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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28788252">Turn, Turn, Turn It Around</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheHomestuckWhovian/pseuds/TheHomestuckWhovian'>TheHomestuckWhovian</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Based on a Tumblr Post, Gen, New Girl au, Or Several, and it was my post, but not the show</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 07:49:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>19,033</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28788252</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheHomestuckWhovian/pseuds/TheHomestuckWhovian</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Due to a series of tardies that are totally not because of Ladybug-related sleep deprivation, Marinette is transferred into a school closer to home. Being the new girl is already weird enough, but with the discord in her new class and a liar with no qualms about destroying lives to get what she wants, it looks like things might be more trouble than they're worth.</p><p>Or, an AU where Marinette went to a different school until Chameleon.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Eventually - Relationship, slow burn bitches</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>141</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chameleon: Part 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Title comes from the song "Hey Girl" sung by Zooey Deschanel, which was also the theme song to the show <em>New Girl</em> because I'm hilarious.</p><p>So I decided to do what managed to get me through writing two long fics back when I was writing Voltron fic: I'm gonna work on two long fics at the same time and switch between them when I lose motivation. The other long fic is for a different fandom, but if you like Ace Attorney, you can find it <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24818551">here</a>.</p><p>This story is based off <a href="https://boopboopitydoop.tumblr.com/tagged/new+girl+au">an AU I came up with on Tumblr ages ago</a>. It's...semi-salt? Maybe? I created this au from the idea of flipping the traditional salt scenario of Marinette transferring into a new school after Chameleon, while having Lila remain in school after Volpina. This leads to a complicated situation where neither I, nor the people who reblogged or replied to <a href="https://boopboopitydoop.tumblr.com/post/188049821297/new-girl-au">the initial post</a>, have any idea if this is a salt au or not.</p><p>As a warning, this AU was created before Felix's canon appearance, and while I decided to take a few cues from his canon portrayal for this story (for funsies), his personality is going to reflect the fanon instead.</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>New school, new friends, and new enemies.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marinette ultimately couldn't argue her parents' point as she walked towards her new school that morning: Collège Françoise Dupont was closer than her old school, and she wasn't going to be tardy as often. That didn't completely get rid of her issues with attending said school.</p><p>And speaking of issues, she slowed down as a familiar blond girl climbed out of a limo, flouncing up the stairs and into the building without giving any attention to any one else around her. It would be hard to not recognize Chloé Bourgeois even if Marinette wasn't one of the two people who ended up having to clean up her messes at least three times a month when this whole mess had begun, just as it was hard not to recognize Collège Françoise Dupont due to the sheer amount of akumas that had been produced there.</p><p>Her parents hadn't sounded very enthusiastic about it themselves, but she could understand why they found it necessary, with the way her standing with her old school was suffering from her repeated tardies. Even if it meant she didn't get to spend as much time with her friends during the week. On the bright side, she wouldn't have to do much traveling to get to ground zero next time someone at this school got magically induced into trying to murder Chloé.</p><p>Somehow, it didn't feel like much of a bright side.</p><p>Taking a deep breath, she headed up the stairs into the building. She wasn't sure whether this was an "out of the frying pan" situation, or if this was her entering the frying pan and the fire would come up later. Either way...she had handled worse. She'd be fine.</p><hr/><p>Marinette remembered every akuma, mostly because they all were notable for at least something, and Xavier Ramier and August Leclair were evidence that any akuma could be recreated. Remembering the akumas meant remembering the level of threat they were and, hopefully, remembering the weaknesses she could exploit.</p><p>The principal was Dark Owl, who had gotten too close to getting the Miraculous for her liking. Her teacher, whose name was printed on top of her schedule she had retrieved from the office, was Zombizou, who had created a love zombie apocalypse that had been annoying on many levels. The girl she passed in the hallway with the blue cloud dress was Stormy Weather, one of the early akumas who had been difficult to out maneuver when she could literally blow Ladybug and Chat Noir away.</p><p>Still, it was a bit of a shock to open the door to her classroom and see several pairs of eyes staring at her, especially when she recognized almost all of them.</p><p>Lady Wifi, Bubbler, Dark Cupid, Timebreaker, Princess Fragrance, Reflekta, Evillustrator, Horrificator, and on and on. There was only one face she didn't recognize and that was a blond boy with green eyes in the front row, sitting next to the girl Marinette recognized as Volpina. Every other person had been akumatized.</p><p>It was almost enough to keep her from noticing that Chloé was also in this class.</p><p>Marinette didn't blame the victims for being akumatized, but she did feel a bit nervous anyway as she walked up to the teacher and her desk. It was mostly just the attention all on her, curious, searching eyes that seemed to be looking into her soul.</p><p>The teacher, Ms. Caline Bustier, smiled at her. "You must be Marinette, then?"</p><p>"Yes ma'am," Marinette answered with a nod, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a letter. "I was told I needed to give you my accommodation letter?"</p><p>Ms. Bustier nodded and took it, her eyes scanning over it for a moment before opening a folder and tucking it aside. "Alright, I'll be sure to make a note of this. I'd recommend talking to the librarian at lunch about the distraction-free testing room, since she can give you more information about it. For now, your assigned seat is in the back desk to the right, on the aisle side, next to Sabrina."</p><p>"Thank you, Ms. Bustier," Marinette answered politely, before turning to look at the desks.</p><p>Most of the eyes had looked away now, most of her new classmates involved in their own conversations. Chloé looked up from where she was filing her nails, her eyes looking Marinette up and down, and she let out a small noise that meant...something, before turning her attention back to her manicure. The Ladyblogger (Lady Wifi: disable internet and destroy any devices that would provide her service and she could be overpowered), was looking at her as she whispered to the boy sitting next to her (Bubbler: bubbles could give him control over the environment with traps and such, but in a face-to-face fight he was easy to deal with). The blond boy she didn't recognize made eye contact with her briefly, giving her a smile and a small wave of greeting that she returned. And the girl beside him (Volpina: illusions are dangerous, but keeping on the offensive would prevent her from using her flute and her physical prowess was no match for an actual miraculous user) gave her an appraising look that made her feel a little uncomfortable.</p><p>Shaking her head, she headed up the stairs to one of the back desks, the one where a girl with short red hair (Vanisher; a much more effective Volpina due to her invisibility being constant, use some sort of method to render her visible, like flour) was sitting, scribbling in a journal.</p><p>"Hi, you're Sabrina, right?" she asked, and the girl looked up, blinking in surprise before giving a quick nod, scooting over so Marinette could sit beside her. "Thanks."</p><p>Tugging her phone from her pocket, since class had yet to begin, she could already see several new text messages.</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: day 1 without marinette: life seems to have lost all its color. i enter mr. dubois' class and he immediately fails me in math because it is now obvious i've lost my crutch. i feel so alone.<br/></em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: dude</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: class hasnt even started yet</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: uuuuuuuuuuugh</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Do you want my crown legs?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: hell no clown</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Grumpy Cat Meme: Why are you texting? We are all in the same class.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Grumpy Cat Meme: Who changed my name?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: :)</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Grumpy Cat Meme changed their name to Felix</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: :(</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: mari's not in this class anymore. i wanted to include her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: I suppose that's fair, but I'm trying to study for the quiz.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: THERE'S A QUIZ???</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: uh oh better cram allegra</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: shut up i will kill you</em>
</p><p>Marinette let out a snort at Allegra's antics, quickly typing out a new text message. Allegra and Claude had both acted like the world was ending when Marinette had told them she was transferring to a new school, and it seemed Allegra was still extending the joke. It wasn't like she wasn't meeting up with them after school or anything. Still...</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: good luck on your quiz guys! you can do it Allegra, I believe in you!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: i'm gonna cry i've been blessed</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Seriously legs you can have the crown whenever you want</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: fuck off clown</em>
</p><p>Tucking her phone back into her pocket, she glanced over at her new deskmate, who had finished scribbling in her notebook and was now tucking it into her bag.</p><p>"So...are you a writer?" Marinette asked quietly, and Sabrina jumped, seeming startled at the question.</p><p>"...Not really," Sabrina answered, keeping her voice down as she did. "More like...investigative journalist?" She shrugged a bit helplessly before fidgeting with her sleeves as she did. "Or maybe a detective, I guess."</p><p>Marinette smiled. "That's really cool. Like a police detective or a private detective?"</p><p>Sabrina tilted her head thoughtfully. "I'm not sure? My dad's a police officer, but he's a patrolman, not a detective, so I don't really know much about what a police detective does. He mostly does things like give tickets and stop people from feeding pigeons in public areas. He doesn't really help people so much as enforce the law." She shrugged again, but she didn't seem as nervous anymore. "It's not always the same thing."</p><p>Remembering Stoneheart, the first Mr. Pigeon attack, and Rogercop, Marinette couldn't help but agree there. "That's a good point."</p><p>Sabrina gave a small smile, before asking, "Um, what about you?"</p><p>Marinette laughed. "I'm a fashion designer, actually. I really like designing and making clothes, and I really love it when a piece comes together." She shrugged awkwardly, admitting, "I guess that's not as big of a deal as wanting to help people, but it's what I love."</p><p>"I think it's cool," Sabrina answered. "We actually had a contest here hosted by Gabriel Agreste to design a hat. It's too bad you had to miss it."</p><p>"Nah, it's fine. I'm honestly not a big fan of Gabriel as a brand." <em>And Gabriel as a person can go crawl in a ditch. </em>"Some of the accessories he designs are cool, but the clothes are dull and boring. He isn't willing to take risks or do anything except stay safe, and you can't wear his clothes without practically begging for stains because it's all white."</p><p>Sabrina nodded sagely. "Yeah, and it's all ridiculously expensive too. I think I like my clothes from the thrift store more."</p><p>"Your outfit looks really cute on you too," Marinette agreed, and Sabrina gave a small, slightly embarrassed smile at that.</p><p>"Thanks."</p><p>"Alright everybody, class is starting!" Ms. Bustier called, and the class began putting phones away and pulling out notebooks. "And remember to introduce yourselves to your new classmate when you can. I hope you'll all give Marinette a warm welcome."</p><p>A blond girl with light blue eyes (Princess Fragrance: improvised gas masks for herself and Chat Noir before confrontation) glanced back at her and gave her a little wave, and Marinette smiled at her and waved back.</p><p>Even if this class had Chloé in it, it seemed at least a few people here were really nice. Maybe this wouldn't be too bad?</p><hr/><p>"Hey, do you want to be lab partners in Ms. Mendeleiev's class?" Sabrina asked as the two of them stood up, and Marinette blinked in surprise. "My uh...my old lab partner paired up with someone else and I...I really don't want to pair up with Chloé."</p><p>"Sure!" Marinette answered. "I'd be happy to!"</p><p>Sabrina smiled at that, seeming somewhat relieved at that. Marinette couldn't blame her, not really.</p><p>Before Marinette could say anything else, she heard someone on the step behind her, and turned to face the blond girl from before and a girl with black and purple hair (Reflekta: difficult to track later on, but not dangerous and can be baited out of hiding) standing there, the blond girl sticking out a hand and saying cheerfully, "Hi, I'm Rose! Welcome to Collège Françoise Dupont!"</p><p>"Oh, thank you," Marinette answered, shaking her hand. "I'm Marinette." Then, looking over to the dark haired girl, she asked, "What's your name?"</p><p>"...Juleka," the girl answered quietly. "Uh, nice to meet you."</p><p>"She's the best friend I've ever had," Rose declared proudly, pulling Juleka into a sideways hug that caused her to blush somewhat. "But anyway, I'm the class representative for this class, so if you have any questions or need help with anything, you can come to me!"</p><p>Marinette nodded in understanding. "Alright, thanks for letting me know! It's really nice to meet you both."</p><p>"Nice to meet you too," Rose answered cheerfully. "I'm sure you'll find a lot of friends in this class."</p><p>"We, uh..." Marinette turned to see Sabrina standing there, looking a bit awkward. "We should probably get to class. Ms. Mendeleiev doesn't like it when students are late."</p><p>
  <em>Better made a note of that.</em>
</p><p>"Oops, right," Rose agreed, laughing. "Thanks for the reminder, Sabrina."</p><p>Sabrina nodded without a word, slinging her backpack over her shoulder and giving Rose and Juleka a tiny wave before heading down the stairs. Marinette could see the way Rose's smile fell, replaced with a concerned frown, but she didn't feel it was any of her business.</p><p>Still, it was...it was weird, that Sabrina had gotten so quiet all of a sudden.</p><p>"Hey Marinette," Rose began, drawing her attention again. "I really hope you and Sabrina become good friends. I think she needs it." Then with a smile, she continued, "Well, we better get to class!"</p><p>Marinette frowned, a bit confused, but nodded, turning and hurrying to follow Sabrina.</p><p>"Is everything alright?" she asked quietly, once she had caught up, and Sabrina glanced over at her for a moment before giving a small nod.</p><p>"Yeah, don't worry about it," she answered. "It's just...a bit of an awkward situation. But it's not a big deal."</p><p>
  <em>Hmm...that doesn't sound right. But it's none of my business, so I won't bother her about it.</em>
</p><hr/><p>
  <em>Fashionista: hey guys!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: SHE LIVES!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: SHE LIVES!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: You both are insufferable.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: aw thanks felix</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: so I got the Queen of Mean in my class.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Oh shit you don't mean</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: chloe bourgeois?!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: oh god mari i'm so sorry</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: An unstoppable force meets and immovable object. Chloe Bourgeois, who has akumatized nearly everyone she knows, versus Marinette Dupain-Cheng, who has never even been at risk.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: so far Chloe hasn't done anything to me.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: but considering there's only one person in my class who has never been akumatized</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: what le fuck</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: I second Allegra's statement.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: yeah it's wild</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: you got this marinette</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Speed Demon: dont let her break your record!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Hey felix you grew up with her</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Any advice?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: Get a restraining order.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: I don't think that's going to work out?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: Then I have nothing to recommend.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Felix: Have you run into Adrien yet?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: not yet</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Fashionista: how'd the quiz go?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: no do not remind me of it</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: it is out of mind, it does not exist</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Drama King: Keep telling yourself that legs</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Melodious: wanna die clown?</em>
</p><p>"Who are you texting?" Sabrina asked out of curiosity, and Marinette let out a snort as she tucked her phone back into her pocket.</p><p>"Just my friends," Marinette answered. "They were a bit worried about me because..." She hesitated, wondering if this was maybe rude to bring up.</p><p>Sabrina nodded in understanding. "All the akumatizations? Yeah, that makes sense. I think some kids in other classes got transferred out because their parents were worried." She shuddered slightly. "Getting akumatized is a freaky experience. It's happened to me twice, and I hate it. I really hope you don't have to go through that."</p><p>
  <em>Yeah, me too.</em>
</p><p>Marinette noticed a small bag in with her lunch as she opened it up, and she checked inside the bag to see a few macarons. Then, looking over to Sabrina, she pulled one from the bag and asked, "Want one?"</p><p>Sabrina's eyes brightened at the sight. "Really?" She took the cookie from Marinette's hand and took a bite, humming in delight at the taste. "Ish so good!"</p><p>"My dad made them," Marinette explained, taking one out for herself and taking a bite. "He must have snuck them into my lunch when I wasn't looking."</p><p>"That's really sweet." Sabrina finished her macaron in a second bite, smiling as she did.</p><p>As Marinette started on the rest of her lunch, she could hear loud talking from a nearby table, and she glanced up at it to see the girl she recognized as Volpina sitting on the table, with a few of her classmates sitting at the table and a few more gathered around it. It was kind of ridiculous, honestly.</p><p>"And Jagged Stone promised to write a song for me as a thank you!" she continued, and Marinette frowned at that. "It was so nice of him, especially since all I did was save his kitten at the airport."</p><p>
  <em>...What?</em>
</p><p>Marinette mentally went over all the ways that was weird. For one, Jagged Stone didn't have a kitten. Fang was too much of a hazard to a kitten for that to work out. For another...this girl couldn't be much older than her, could she? She had to realize how creepy it would be for a grown man to write a song about her, right? Jagged was a lot of things, but he definitely had enough impulse control and common sense to know better than to do something like that. And Penny would murder him if he causes her a PR crisis like that.</p><p>Sabrina sighed, tugging her notebook out of her bag and opening it up, writing something down before closing it again. "Please tell me you hear what was wrong with that?"</p><p>"You mean that she's spreading rumors about a celebrity implying that he would do something as creepy as writing a song for a minor?" Marinette asked. "While also suggesting a man who takes his crocodile everywhere with him would have a kitten as a pet?"</p><p>"Yeah," Sabrina answered with a nod. "I think a lot of them are a bit too starstruck by the idea of someone knowing Jagged Stone to realize the implications." She scowled at her sandwich for a moment, before shaking her head and going back to her meal.</p><p>Marinette, for only a moment, entertained calling out the lie. But logic (which tended to sound a lot like Felix) pointed out that there was no reason for them to believe her over the person they had known longer. Not to mention that Marinette didn't want to take advantage of the working relationship she had with Jagged Stone just to call out a namedropper. That wouldn't make her much better than namedropper herself.</p><p>Still...she still remembered the circumstances that led to Volpina in the first place. She had hoped that maybe the girl had reconsidered the namedropping. But apparently not.</p><p>"I gotta go to the bathroom," she eventually said after a moment. "Could you watch my stuff?"</p><p>Sabrina nodded, and Marinette stood, heading towards the sign she had noticed earlier.</p><p>Once she was inside, and it was clear she was alone, she opened her purse. "Hey Tikki, what do you think about the former Volpina?"</p><p>"I think there's some information we're missing," Tikki admitted, sticking her head out to look at Marinette. "Do you remember Oni-chan?"</p><p>Marinette frowned, answering, "Beyond another example of Hawk Moth's questionable knowledge of cultures outside of Europe you mean?" That's right, that particular akuma had been dead set on killing the former Volpina, though she hadn't known why. She thought maybe Chat Noir knew, but if he did then he wasn't saying anything. "Yeah, she was gunning for her the way a lot of akumas went after Chloé."</p><p>Tikki nodded. "I think you need to keep an eye on her, Marinette. It's possible we might be underestimating her by considering her just a namedropper."</p><p>Before she could say anything, the sound of the handle of the door sent Tikki diving back into the purse, and Marinette began rooting through it with a plastered grimace on her face.</p><p>"Everything alright?" a familiar voice asked, and Marinette looked over to see that, speak of the devil, the girl she and Tikki had been talking about was right there.</p><p>"Forgot a pad," she answered, and the grimace was a bit more real at that. She didn't like how easy small little lies like that were now. "Do you happen to have one?"</p><p>"Oh yeah, sure!" The girl reached into her own purse, rooting through it a bit before holding out a pad. Marinette quietly thanked her and went into the nearest stall.</p><p>Once she was done, she left the stall and moved to wash her hands, and she mentally took note of the fact that the girl was still in the bathroom, leaning on the wall by the door.</p><p>"So your name is Marinette then?" she asked, and Marinette nodded. "I'm Lila. Lila Rossi."</p><p>"Nice to meet you." <em>Definitely better than just calling her "namedropper" or "former Volpina." </em>"Did you need something?"</p><p>The girl, Lila, took a deep breath. "I actually...I wanted to warn you about something."</p><p>Marinette frowned. "About what?"</p><p>"The thing is...I noticed you were sitting with Sabrina in our classes today, and then with her at lunch," Lila explained. "And I realized you probably didn't know..."</p><p>"...Know what?" Marinette asked, raising an eyebrow. Beyond the weirdness with Rose earlier, she hadn't noticed anything off about Sabrina. She seemed perfectly nice, and talking with her had been fun.</p><p>Lila let out a sigh, with an emphasis that seemed a bit dramatic. "Well, I know you're new, but you've gotta know about Chloé Bourgeois, right?" Marinette gave a small nod, still confused. "Well the thing is, Sabrina used to spend all her time with Chloé. Called herself her bestie and everything."</p><p>"...Is that it?" <em>Judging by our conversation earlier about lab partners, it sounds like she doesn't want anything to do with her anymore. </em>"I don't think it's fair to judge someone based on who they used to spend time with, do you? People change, after all." Marinette grabbed a few paper towels and set to drying her hands.</p><p>"But she didn't, is the problem," Lila continued, and Marinette paused. "Did you know when she came to this school, she started harassing me for getting close to her new friends? She accused me of awful things, and she called me names behind my back!" She shook her head sadly. "I tried so hard to be friends with her, but she refused to even try."</p><p>
  <em>...Interesting.</em>
</p><p>"And so you are telling me this because...?"</p><p>"Because you should be careful. She may act like she's washed her hands free of Chloé, but she's still a bully through and through. And she'll go after you if you don't do what she wants."</p><p>
  <em>Something about this is...off. Maybe it's her tone, where it sounds less like she's warning me to be careful and more like she's telling the biggest gossip she's heard today. I don't have enough information to dispute it necessarily, but it doesn't sound like she's doing this out of the goodness of her heart.</em>
</p><p>"...Thanks for the information then," she answered. "I'll take it into consideration." <em>But I'm making my own judgment call first.</em></p><p>"Of course," Lila said, a grin on her face that seemed a bit more victorious than anything. "That's what a hero does, after all."</p><p>Marinette paused. "Huh?"</p><p>Lila's eyes went comically wide, and she slapped her hands over her mouth. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything." Then, under her breath, "She's going to be so mad if she finds out."</p><p>"What are you talking about?" <em>I just thought you were a Ladybug fan or something, this is a weirder reaction than I predicted?</em></p><p>Lila grimaced, looking around nervously before taking a deep breath. "Look, it's...it's a secret, okay? Only the class knows, because I trusted them with it, but...oh I'm sure you're trustworthy too. Anyway...I'm Red Piper."</p><p>"...What."</p><p>She sighed, pulling a pendant out from under her shirt and removing it so Marinette could see. "Ladybug entrusted me with the fox miraculous, in order to help her fight against Hawk Moth. We're best friends, so she knew I could be trusted. This is a secret, of course, so you can't tell anyone, but I'm sure Ladybug will understand if I explain the situation to her."</p><p>Marinette wordlessly took the pendant from Lila's hand, looking over it with a blank stare. Then, she looked up at Lila with the same blank expression, before looking back down at the pendant, doing her best to keep her fury in check.</p><p>This...this girl was seriously claiming to be Red Piper? <em>Seriously? </em>Not only had she continued claiming to have the fox miraculous and be best friends with Ladybug, but now she was taking credit for helping to fight akumas? She had the audacity to put herself and her classmates in danger by claiming to possess one of the miraculous and acting like Ladybug would ever let her get away with so many people knowing?</p><p>She had the audacity to claim credit for what <em>Allegra</em> had done?</p><p>Her hand shook as she looked over the necklace, forcing herself to take deep breaths to keep herself calm. Then, she looked up at Lila and gave her a harsh glare.</p><p>"Are you kidding me?" she asked, doing all she could to keep her voice steady, and Lila flinched. "Do you realize how dangerous it is to go around telling everyone that you just <em>have</em> one of the very specific magical items <em>a super terrorist is gunning for</em>? Not only are you endangering yourself and your family, but what about your classmates?! Your friends?! Have you even considered the fact that Hawk Moth might go after <em>them</em> to get to <em>you</em>?!"</p><p>She needed to stay calm. She needed to <em>stay calm</em>. She couldn't get akumatized over this.</p><p>"It's okay, I trust them," Lila began, but Marinette wasn't going to accept that answer.</p><p>"If Hawk Moth akumatizes them, he's <em>in their head</em>. They won't have a choice about what he knows. And then you're putting the lives of everyone you care about in danger, and over what?! A <em>Gabriel</em> necklace?!" She held up the necklace, showing the raised metal logo on the back, and Lila flinched again, her eyes wide. "Yeah, I doubt the super powerful magic items Hawk Moth is hunting are <em>Gabriel </em>brand. What the hell are you thinking?!"</p><p>Lila clenched her fists. "Fine, I lied. But only because Ladybug asked me to. She wanted me to make sure Red Piper's identity was safe. Are you happy?"</p><p>Marinette couldn't believe this. It was getting so much harder to remain calm with Lila saying this absolute bullshit claiming that <em>she supposedly did that</em>.</p><p>"You expect me to believe that <em>Ladybug</em> would ask you to endanger yourself, a <em>civilian</em>, and everyone close to you for the sake of protecting someone whose identity isn't even <em>at risk</em>?!" She felt insulted. "You call Ladybug your best friend and yet you betray her and her values by endangering the lives of the people she's trying to <em>protect</em>. And what happens if someday there's trouble and everyone you care about looks to you for help and you can't do anything?! Everyone looks to you to protect them and all you can do is stand there because you lied and now you have to let them down!"</p><p>"Shut up!" Lila shouted, pushing Marinette back roughly.</p><p>But Marinette wasn't done. "Namedropping is one thing, but these lies could get someone killed, and their lives would be on your shoulders!"</p><p>"I said shut up!" Lila grabbed Marinette's shoulders roughly and shoved her against the door, and the fox tail necklace clattered to the floor. "Shut up, shut up, <em>shut up!</em>"</p><p>It was quiet for a moment, just the two girls breathing heavily as Lila held Marinette against the door. And Marinette wasn't scared of Lila, but she didn't say another word, her mind finally catching up with her own words.</p><p>"...I'm sorry," Marinette finally continued. "But what you're doing is dangerous. And I'm not going to play along and pretend it's anything otherwise, not when people's lives are at stake."</p><p>The grip on her shoulders tightened, but Marinette couldn't stop now.</p><p>"How many people do you think died during Syren? Or on Heroes Day? What if one day Ladybug can't fix it? What if the day everyone you love is hurt is the day Ladybug and Chat Noir lose and Hawk Moth wins?"</p><p>"Stop it," Lila growled out. "If you say anything about this to anyone, I'll make sure you suffer. You'll be alone, without any friends here, and you'll know better than to cross me."</p><p>"Like Sabrina?" Marinette asked, and Lila's grip fell away as she recoiled. "Yeah, I figured." Rolling her shoulders back with a wince, she continued. "Go for it, then. Ruin my chances of making friends here. It's not like any of them really know me. And...and I'd rather have no friends than put people in danger for attention like you." She turned, heading out the door without looking back.</p><p>Her hands...they were shaking. She needed to calm down, didn't she?</p><p>Instead of heading back to the cafeteria, she ducked into an empty classroom, and Tikki zipped out of her bag, circling her before find a place on top of her head and nestling in her hair.</p><p>"Breathe with me, okay?" Tikki said quietly, and Marinette nodded.</p><hr/><p>Lila stood alone in the bathroom, hands clenched tightly in fists.</p><p>How...<em>how dare she.</em></p><p>"She's no better than Ladybug," Lila growled under her breath, furious.</p><p>She heard the flapping of wings and turned to see a familiar black butterfly heading for the door, about to phase through it. Then, without even really thinking about it, she snatched from the air, feeling it fluttering in a panic in her hand for a moment as a smirk grew on her face.</p><p>She reached up, pressing the butterfly to her right earring and feeling it dissolve into it.</p><p>
  <em>Hmm...well this is interesting.</em>
</p><p>"You want to destroy Ladybug, don't you?" Lila asked, keeping her voice quiet. "Well, so do I. So how about we make a deal?"</p><p>
  <em>...I'm listening.</em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>* Claude and Allegra call Marinette "Mari"<br/>* Claude also calls Allegra "Legs" and Allegra calls him "Clown" but only when they're messing with each other. If Allegra calls Claude "Clown", he'll respond by calling her "Legs" and vice versa.<br/>* No one uses a nickname for Felix because he doesn't like nicknames.<br/>* Marinette still worked with Jagged Stone in this AU, under different circumstances, but naturally she didn't compete in the bowler hat competition or meet Aubrey Bourgeois. To make up for that, she also worked with Clara Nightingale, meeting her through Jagged Stone.<br/>* Was going to have Marinette say "Do you feel like a hero yet?" to Lila during their fight...before realizing that was a quote from Spec Ops: The Line. And yeah, Marinette is a gamer and might genuinely know that line, but it would still feel out of place in a serious confrontation?</p><p>Guys it is nearly two in the morning and I am tired. But I was going to get this done, even if it killed me. So here, take my trash.</p><p>Also I'm going ahead and posting part two because I also went ahead and wrote that.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chameleon: Part 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>There is a battle of the imposters, and Marinette stands for justice.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Are you okay?" Sabrina asked as Marinette arrived back at the lunch table. "You were gone for a while."</p><p>"I'm fine," Marinette assured her, waving it off, though mentally she was still reeling.</p><p>After calming down, one thing had made itself clear: There was no way anyone was going to listen to her over Lila, especially since she didn't have any proof beyond the logo on the back of the necklace and being Ladybug herself, the latter of which she couldn't share. As much as it killed her on the inside, there was no way she could reasonably cast doubt on Lila at the moment.</p><p>Still...there was one thing she could do.</p><p>"Can I have your phone number?" she asked Sabrina, who practically jumped in surprise. "I'd like to be friends, if that's cool with you, so I thought-"</p><p>"Yeah!" Sabrina nearly shouted, getting her strange looks from adjacent tables. She blushed a bit, taking a deep breath and saying, a bit calmer, "Yeah, I'd really like that, actually."</p><p>Marinette grinned. "Awesome!"</p><p>The two of them exchanged numbers quickly, and Marinette thought over it a bit before saving her number under "The Great Detective." It seemed suitable enough, as far as she was concerned.</p><p>The bell rang, and Sabrina jumped up from the table excitedly, saying, "I have a pretty good collection of Disney movies at my apartment. Maybe we could watch some of them together some day after school?"</p><p>"I'd love that!" Marinette agreed, grinning. "Oh, I should introduce you to my friends from my old school some time. They're all really cool people, though Felix might take some time to warm up? I'll talk to them about maybe inviting you to hang out with us sometime?"</p><p>The two of them continued to talk as they pushed in their chairs and disposed of their trash before heading back towards the class. Marinette couldn't help the smile on her face, the bad encounter in the bathroom drifting to the back of her mind as they walked down the hall together.</p><p>At least, until she saw a familiar person leaning against the wall in their path.</p><p>"New girl," Lila greeted, and Marinette rolled her eyes. Seemed she had lost name privileges. "See you've decided to befriend the social pariah. Not very smart of you."</p><p>Sabrina scowled, clutching the straps of her backpack tightly as she said, "Back off, Lila."</p><p>"Oh please, I'm not trying to ruin your chances to actually have a friend," Lila remarked, rolling her eyes. "In fact, I think it's cute how she's really so desperate to have any friends here she'll stick with the former Chloé slave."</p><p>That got Sabrina to let out a frustrated growl, but Marinette simply placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"And you're so desperate for us to acknowledge you that you decided to come bother us," she remarked, rolling her eyes. "What do you want, Lila? If you wanted to badmouth us, you could have done it anywhere."</p><p>Lila shrugged, pushing herself off the wall and walking over to them, explaining, "Oh, I just wanted to make something clear to you, new girl. Something I made sure Sabrina already knows." Then, she leaned in, so their faces were right next to each other, grabbing Marinette's arm so she couldn't lean away. "I <em>always</em> get what I want."</p><p>There was suddenly purple light in Marinette's eyes, and she didn't even have time to react when Sabrina let out a cry and suddenly she was tackling Lila to the ground, and Marinette could see the purple butterfly outline around Lila's eyes.</p><p>"Marinette, run!" Sabrina called, wrestling with Lila as best as she could.</p><p>"But Sabrina-"</p><p>"I'll be fine, now go!"</p><p>Marinette hesitated, before turning and running to the girl's restroom, ducking inside and checking to make sure it was empty before opening her purse for Tikki. "We have to go help Sabrina. Tikki, spots on!"</p>
<hr/><p>Adrien probably would have thought more about the fact that Lila wasn't walking with them...if he wasn't just purely relieved by the fact that she wasn't there, and the fact that he had managed to dissuade Alya from sending him to look for her. The only other time he got to avoid Lila that didn't involve being at home or being Chat Noir was when he was hanging out with Kagami, and since she was in a different class they never got to hang out at school really. He was going to take every opportunity to be away from her without questioning it.</p><p>"I really want to talk to Chat Noir about organizing an interview with Ladybug," Alya continued, "because I've gotten several interviews with him but haven't had the chance to interview her yet. I also kind of want to get the chance to properly interview the temps, other than Lila of course, but they are never around for long and I don't see them at night during the patrols so Ladybug would probably be easier to land an interview with than one of them."</p><p>He really needed to find some way of letting Alya and Nino know that Lila was lying about being Red Piper without letting on that he was Chat Noir. Especially considering Red Piper was a huge lesbian and Lila was at the very least interested in him. If that got out during one of Alya's post-akuma interrogations, that would probably be really awkward.</p><p>"'scuse me, need to borrow this," Sabrina's voice spoke up, and Adrien turned to watch as Sabrina snatched Nino's hat from his head, to the shock of all three of them.</p><p>"What the-hey!" Alya called, shocked and furious. "What do you think you're doing?"</p><p>Sabrina(?) stuck her tongue out at them, putting on Nino's hat and hurrying down the hall to the stairs, leaving the three of them frozen in place, staring after her as she ran through the exit.</p><p>"...That's not Sabrina," Adrien said aloud.</p><p>"Yeah, she'd never skip school like that," Alya agreed with a nod, pulling her phone out of her pocket with a grin. "Which means that must be an akuma!" Then she was off down the stairs, Nino on her heels with an exasperated look on his face.</p><p>Adrien ducked into an unused classroom, saying, "No time to waste. Plagg, claws out!"</p>
<hr/><p>Sabrina and Lila were no longer on the floor when Marinette arrived, but soft snoring led her to opening one of the nearby lockers, only to catch Sabrina as she fell out of it.</p><p>"Sabrina?" Marinette called, trying to shake her awake, but it was no use. "Shit." She pulled Sabrina's backpack from the locker Lila had abandoned her in, laying it on the ground and using it as a pillow for her. "Don't worry, Sabrina. I'll make sure you're okay."</p><p>It was quick work to get to the roof of the school, where Chat Noir was already waiting, staff open to the screen on the inside.</p><p>"Hey kitty, what are you looking at?"</p><p>"The Ladyblog livestream," he explained, showing her his staff. And Marinette watched with wide eyes as Sabrina rode a stolen bike down the street, a red cap on her head and a string of flags wrapped around her body, and heard as the Ladyblogger was huffing and puffing chasing after her. "Talked to one of the students who was there when she stole the hat, and he insists she's an impawster."</p><p>
  <em>Oh I heard that pun in there, you little shit.</em>
</p><p>"Considering I found that girl unconscious in a locker downstairs, he has a point," Marinette agreed. Then, with a frown, she noted, "Seems the akuma is trying to allow the Ladyblogger to keep up. Think it might be a trap?"</p><p>Chat Noir snorted. "Pawsibly. But knowing Hawk Moth, purrhaps we don't need to worry."</p><p>Marinette sighed, shaking her head. "I'm going to need a cat nap after dealing with you." Chat Noir snorted at the pun, and she smirked. "But even still, a trap would be pretty inconvenient. What do you say to coming up with our own trap?"</p><p>The grin on his face would give the Cheshire Cat a run from his money.</p>
<hr/><p>"Do you think we might be baiting Ladybug and Chat Noir into a trap by accident?" Nino asked as the two of them hurried down the street after the fake Sabrina.</p><p>Alya frowned. Of course, she couldn't ignore the possibility. The fake Sabrina was on a bike and could have outpaced them easily, but she hadn't. And it was Alya who was broadcasting the location of the akuma out, meaning that, if she was planning a trap, then Alya was likely going to lead them right into it by nature of livestreaming it.</p><p>But...</p><p>"Maybe, but we're also not really giving her an option to switch tactics," Alya explained quietly. "We don't really know what this akuma is capable of, beyond looking like Sabrina, but we aren't really giving her an option to try and change tactics or use her powers on anyone else. If we just let her run off, who knows what kind of chaos she'd cause."</p><p>Nino grimaced. "Fair enough, babe. Still, we should be careful."</p><p>"Yeah yeah, don't worry. We've got this." She hoped.</p><p>Eventually, they ended up at the base of the Eiffel Tower, and both Alya and Nino watched with wide eyes as fake Sabrina began making ridiculous jumps up the side of it, hollering something they couldn't properly hear as she did.</p><p>"Hey babe," Alya asked a bit distantly. "Would you put super jumps under super strength or super agility?"</p><p>"Strength," Nino answered, still in shock.</p><p>She nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."</p><p>"Yeah, you need a lot of power to propel yourself up in a jump like that."</p><p>Both Alya and Nino started, looking behind them to see Chat Noir, a shit-eating grin on his face as he stood there.</p><p>Before either of them could say anything, he continued, "Sorry we're late, by the way. Had to get everything ready for the show. " Then, with a salute, he raced off, disappearing into the confused crowd.</p><p>"...What?" Alya asked, confused, only to be startled when Ladybug and Chat Noir dropped to the ground between her and where the fake Sabrina was posturing on the Eiffel Tower.</p><p>"Oh, so you finally decided to show up?" the fake Sabrina called, jumping down and landing in a three point landing. Then, she stood, brushing herself off before taking a stance. "Alright then...come and get me."</p><p>Chat Noir let out an annoyed growl and threw himself forward, and fake Sabrina side-stepped him, moving to grab him only for him to just narrowly dodge. And from there, the battle began.</p><p>Alya immediately picked up on something off about the fight, though it took her a few moments to identify what. Ladybug and Chat Noir were weirdly defensive, despite seeming to have an advantage with two against one. Instead of going on the offensive and cornering fake Sabrina, they were doing everything they could to avoid her touching them. In addition, Chat Noir was just a little slower than normal, his dodges somewhat narrower than usual, and Ladybug was faster, using her yoyo a lot less than she usually did. And they were definitely not as talkative as normal</p><p>Then again, no one really knew what this akuma was capable of? Maybe they were trying to get an idea before jumping in head first? Still...something was off.</p><p>"Ugh, I've had enough of this!" fake Sabrina shouted, a purple outline appearing around her eyes as she dove for Chat Noir, reaching to grab his arm.</p><p>Only for her hands to knock against the air and, in a puff of orange smoke, reveal a green-suited boy blocking her with a shield, a smirk on his face.</p><p>"What?" the fake Sabrina asked, shocked.</p><p>"Captain Turtle?" Nino and Alya asked simultaneously, shocked.</p><p>Before anyone could say anything, Ladybug cried out, "Venom!" in a voice that definitely wasn't her own, before jabbing something into the fake Sabrina's arm, causing her to go stiff. At the moment of contact, there was another puff of orange smoke, and there a boy in a yellow and black suit, grinning victoriously.</p><p>Then, down the real Ladybug and Chat Noir dropped, with a familiar red-orange girl with them.</p><p>"Amazing performance, everyone!" Ladybug congratulated, and Chat Noir was applauding as he did. Red Piper went ahead and gave a bow, while Captain Turtle rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and Hornet merely rolled his eyes. "Alright, now to find the akumatized item."</p><p>Alya couldn't help herself, finding her feet moving before her brain had even thought of it, and she was about to say something when she noticed a silver earring in the fake Sabrina's ear, one that looked very familiar.</p><p>("Check out my new earrings!" Lila had gushed not even a week before. "My mom bought them for me as a present. Don't they look cute on me?")</p><p>"Nino, take my phone," Alya insisted, and he did, looking slightly confused as she walked over to the paralyzed imposter, reaching out and carefully removing the earring from her ear, turning and handing it to Ladybug. "Here. This is what you're looking for."</p><p>Ladybug blinked, before nodding and dropping it to the ground, stomping on it and watching the black butterfly begin to fly away from the remains before catching it. Then, after a moment, she called "Lucky charm!" and a red polka-dotted locket dropped into her hand, one she didn't seem to give much thought before throwing into the air and calling, "Miraculous Ladybug!"</p><p>As the dark energy dissipated around the fake Sabrina, revealing her to be Lila, Alya could hear Nino gasp behind her. But she didn't say a word, just watched as the five heroes bumped their fists together, collectively going "Good job!" It was a nice scene, though Alya was struggling a bit to appreciate it at the moment. So instead, she helped the dazed Lila to her feet.</p><p>"Hey Lila," she began, and Lila let out a tired groan. "Yeah, getting akumatized takes a lot outta ya. Hey Nino, can you cut the livestream?"</p><p>"You got it," Nino answered, seeming oddly calm. It was like the two of them silently agreed in that moment not to make a big deal out of it, even if Alya's mind was racing over the information she had just received. No...better to talk to Lila in private, after things had calmed down. Not now.</p><p>There were a chorus of three unsynchronized beeps, and Ladybug winced, declaring, "I'll meet up with the three of you in a bit to get you sorted. Chat Noir, can you escort these three back to their school?"</p><p>"You got it, my lady," Chat Noir answered with a mock salute, and Ladybug rolled her eyes with a fond smile before she and the temp trio disappeared in all different directions, leaving just the three civilians and Chat Noir. "Okay, let's get you three back to school. You guys can decide from there if you should go home or finish the day."</p><p>"Yeah...we'll have to think about it," Nino remarked a bit distantly, shooting Alya a worried look that Lila seemed to miss.</p><p>She couldn't help but agree with him though.</p><p>There was definitely a lot to think about.</p>
<hr/><p>Sabrina blinked awake, looking up at three worried faces as she did, and didn't understand what was going on at first.</p><p>"Wha..." she began, confused. Then, like lightning, she remembered, and she began to sit up. "Shoot, Marinette!"</p><p>"Lay back down," Rose insisted, her voice surprisingly firm. "We found you unconscious in the hallway and Ivan carried you to the nurse's office. Can you tell us what happened?"</p><p>Sabrina blinked, finally processing the fact that Rose, Juleka, and Ivan were surrounding her, all looking at her with concern. And that was weird, because she...she had been pretty sure no one in her class cared about her anymore, not after what Lila had done.</p><p>"Lila...she was akumatized," Sabrina began, her voice shaking. "She was going to do something to Marinette, but I tackled her, and then...then she kissed me? And I don't remember anything after that..." Then, panicked, "Is Marinette okay?"</p><p>"I'll text Max and see if he can go find her," Rose assured her, resting a hand on her shoulder soothingly. "It'll be okay, Sabrina. Ladybug and Chat Noir have already beat the akuma. Marinette will be okay."</p><p>"I...okay," she answered, her voice small. She couldn't help but be a bit terrified anyway, despite that, but she...she had to be assured that even if Lila<em> had</em> hurt Marinette, Ladybug would have fixed it.</p><p>It would be okay.</p>
<hr/><p>Marinette dropped into the alleyway where Allegra, Claude, and Alan were waiting, kwamis chattering excitedly with each other as they did. "Good job today, you three. Sorry to call you all while you were in school-"</p><p>"Don't worry about it," Allegra answered cheerfully, smiling as Trixx nuzzled her cheek. "Honestly, I think I needed this. Clown was worrying over a quiz."</p><p>"Oh screw you, Legs," Claude sniped, and Wayzz let out a snort.</p><p>Alan shook his head, rubbing a finger against the top of Pollen's head as he noted, "Looks like we're the only cool ones here Pollen, as usual."</p><p>Pollen let out a giggle, before answering jokingly, "Of course. We are the coolest people here, obviously."</p><p>Marinette shook her head at their antics, before saying, "Make sure to say goodbye quickly, you guys, or you won't make it back to school in time."</p><p>There was a bit of chaos as the three of them said goodbye to the kwamis, with Trixx definitely making jokes about "corrupting" Allegra as they did and Claude insisting that had long since passed to Allegra's chagrin, and Marinette sighed, shaking her head.</p><p>She hadn't intended for the three of them to find out about each other's identities, but in the chaos of Heroes Day there hadn't been any time to separate them to give them the miraculous. On the bright side, it did mean she didn't have to worry too much about pulling one or more of them away when she needed them, thought it did make her feel guilty that Felix was left out of the loop completely. It felt completely unfair.</p><p>Once Hawk Moth was handled, she'd tell them all the truth, Felix especially. She'd tell Chat Noir first, obviously...but they would be the next to know. She only hoped none of them would be too upset that she had lied to them.</p><p>She passed the three of them their boxes, each depositing their miraculous inside as they did, and Marinette quickly shooed them off to send them back to their school, only to be surprised when Claude hung back for a moment.</p><p>"Hey...our friend Marinette started attending that school that all those akumas were coming from?" he began, and Marinette blinked in surprise. "If it's not too much to ask...could you keep an eye out for her, for us?"</p><p>"I...yeah, of course," she answered, doing her best not too sound too choked up or emotional at that. "After all you've guys done to help me and Chat Noir out...I think I owe you guys a few favors anyway."</p><p>He grinned. "Alright. Thanks, Ladybug." And with that, he hurried after Allegra and Alan, leaving Marinette alone.</p><p>She took a deep breath, before remembering something.</p><p>"Shit, I left Sabrina on the floor!"</p><p>And, with that, she threw her yo-yo and zipped away.</p>
<hr/><p>Sabrina practically tackled Marinette the moment she entered the nurse's office, letting out a relieved, "You're okay!"</p><p>Marinette blinked, before smiling and patting Sabrina on the back. "Yeah, I hid before Lila could find me and watched the Ladyblog until I knew things were safe. One of our classmates told me that Rose brought you here?"</p><p>"Yeah, they found me on the floor," Sabrina admitted, pulling away from the hug. "I was really worried! I can't believe an akuma showed up on your first day!"</p><p>
  <em>Honestly, I can. It's just kind of my luck.</em>
</p><p>"I was more worried about you," Marinette insisted. "I can't believe you threw yourself in danger for my sake. I was terrified you were really hurt and that..." She cringed, feeling guilty.</p><p>Sabrina frowned, then held out her hand, pinky raised. "Let's just promise each other that we will do our best to stay safe, alright?"</p><p>"...Alright," Marinette answered, smiling as she locked pinkies with Sabrina, who grinned. "I promise."</p><p>
  <em>And I'll do my best to keep that promise, despite everything.</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>Adrien had to commend Nino and Alya for keeping their cool, even while Lila did her best to distract the rest of the class from noticing what Alya's livestream had revealed about her claims. Lila was uncomfortably good at diverting attention away from things she didn't want focus on, pointing it towards the things she wanted her audience to care about.</p><p>It was what she had done to Sabrina, after all. Diverted attention away from the person she had proven herself to be, instead emphasizing the person she had had to be while trying desperately to be Chloé's friend. Adrien imagined that was how she had convinced his father to give her the time of day too.</p><p>Even still, Adrien was a bit surprised by how Alya hadn't said anything yet. Alya wasn't one to hold back when she was mad, and she had even called him and Nino out in the past when she felt they were in the wrong, no matter how inconvenient it was. He was a bit worried that she had taken it harder than he thought, that she was still struggling to process.</p><p>He couldn't say anything about it himself. And not just because Lila was attached to his arm now that the crowd had dissipated.</p><p>The door to the classroom opened and in came Sabrina and the new girl (Marinette, if he remembered correctly), and he was surprised by how animated Sabrina was, practically bouncing as she talked with a huge grin on her face, hands gesturing as she did. Adrien couldn't believe it really; it had been forever since Sabrina had looked genuinely happy when he could see her, and he always felt bad that he never had the opportunity to talk to her and check in with her due to everything. He didn't know what Marinette had done to brighten Sabrina's day, but he was happy that it had happened.</p><p>Lila leaned into his space, glancing over at the two girls with a sneer as they headed towards the stairs, before whispering, "You wouldn't like that new girl at all, Adrien. You should have heard the things she said to me earlier."</p><p>Adrien leaned away, even more uncomfortable by her deciding to get even closer, before asking, "Can you please give me some space?"</p><p>"But Adrien," Lila whined, her eyes growing pitifully large, and Adrien could already feel his heart sink. Yeah, there was no way he was getting any space now. "I had such an awful day, getting akumatized and everything. Being close to you makes me feel better."</p><p>
  <em>Yeah, but being close to your just makes me feel awful.</em>
</p><p>Adrien would never say that, especially not to someone who could and probably would report back to his father, but sometimes he wished he could.</p><p>"Excuse me," a voice spoke up, and Adrien and Lila looked up to see Marinette standing there, hands on her hips and eyebrow raised. "I'm pretty sure he asked you to let go of him."</p><p>"And why's that any of your business?" Lila asked, clutching his arm tighter, and Adrien winced.</p><p>Marinette shook her head. "I think that you need a reminder of the lesson of <em>consent</em>, because it sounds like your friend there didn't give you permission to touch him right now." She glanced over at him, asking, "Are you alright?"</p><p>"He's fine," Lila answered for him, and Adrien felt frustrated at that. <em>Like she actually cares about how I feel.</em> "And I think it would be best if you butted out."</p><p>"Forgive me if I'm not convinced," Marinette stated firmly, before looking at him again, expression softening. "I'd rather hear it from his own words, if that's all the same to you."</p><p>Adrien's eyes went wide, and his brain was struggling to catch up to the idea that someone other than one of his actual friends was asking how he felt about something. And about something that not even Nino or Alya had ever asked if he was okay with.</p><p>(It had kind of felt, after a while, like this was just something he was supposed to allow. Like his opinion on it didn't matter.)</p><p>Lila took his momentary silence as disagreeing with Marinette, saying, "See, he's fine, now buzz off."</p><p>"...Actually," Adrien began, a bit hesitant, and then he took a deep breath before tugging on Lila's vice grip again. "I really don't want to be touched right now." <em>Especially not by you.</em></p><p>It grew a bit quieter in the classroom, and he was very aware of the eyes of his classmates as Lila's eyes began watering with crocodile tears.</p><p>"But Adrien," she began, her voice filled with so much sorrow you'd have thought her dog died, "Aren't we friends? And I had such a bad day and-"</p><p>"Your bad day doesn't give you a right to touch him without his permission," Marinette insisted, crossing her arms in front of her. Lila turned to her, fixing her with a vicious glare, but Marinette wasn't cowed, not even a little bit. "And he told you he didn't want to be touched. So if you really are his friend, I think you should let go of him and respect that."</p><p>Lila let out a quiet growl, before looking around and realizing the eyes of the class were on her. And Adrien realized in that moment that they weren't judging him, but <em>her</em>. And Lila had clearly realized that too, as she put on a mask of sorrow and dropped his arm.</p><p>"Fine," she answered, looking depressed. "I guess if you're not willing to make me feel better, I'll leave you alone."</p><p>Adrien winced, but Marinette just rolled her eyes and remarked, "If you want a companion you can hug without having to ask for permission, get an actual doll instead of treating your friend like one. You have the right to be sad, but you can't just expect him to bend to your whims just because of that. And I think it's unfair to put that expectation on anyone." Then, looking back over to him, she gave him a warm smile and added, "Sorry if I was bothering you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay after what I heard."</p><p>Then, she turned and headed up the steps, plopping into her seat beside Sabrina, and the two began talking quietly between them.</p><p>And Adrien couldn't help but stare for a moment, still processing the information even as Lila let out an annoyed huff.</p><p>...<em>Huh.</em></p>
<hr/><p>"Later!" Sabrina called as she hurried down the steps of the school, waving behind her to Marinette as she did.</p><p>Marinette waved back of course, a smile of her face as Sabrina jumped into the police car her dad was driving (Roger Cop, cover hands and then he would be an easy fight). Even if today had been...eventful, she had managed to make a new friend, and soon she'd get to hang out with her other friends too. She could already imagine Sabrina meeting them.</p><p>Oh jeez, Allegra was probably going to flirt with her, which was either going to be really adorable or really awkward.</p><p>"Hey, Marinette, right?"</p><p>She turned, surprised to see the boy peeking from behind the door to the school, looking a bit nervous as he stepped out onto the landing.</p><p>"Oh hey," she greeted, giving him a hopefully reassuring smile. "Uh, sorry for kind of butting into your business earlier. I overheard what she said and it bothered me and I just-"</p><p>"No, no it's fine!" he insisted, holding out his hands to stop her. "I...I actually really appreciated it." He began rubbing the back of his neck nervously, continuing, "I've...I've never really been able to stand up to her myself, honestly? But...that was the first time anyone in our class every just asked me to say how I felt about it." Marinette's eyes widened, her mind processing what that meant, but before she could he looked up at her and said, "Uh...thanks, for that."</p><p>She blinked, then smiled softly, saying, "No problem." Then, sticking out her hand, she continued, "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng."</p><p>"...Adrien Agreste," he answered, shaking her hand, and her eyes widened at the realization.</p><p>
  <em>Oh shit.</em>
</p><p>"You're Felix's cousin?" she asked, surprised, and Adrien's jaw practically dropped.</p><p>"You know Felix?"</p><p>She nodded, unable to help the smile that grew on her face. "Yeah, he's my best friend! We actually went to school together before I transferred here." <em>So this is the Adrien I've heard about then.</em> "I'm actually going to go hang out with him and a few of my other friends once Allegra's mom picks me up."</p><p>Adrien's eyes were wide, before he grinned. "That's really cool. I think he actually mentioned you a couple of times. You're the girl who has been making better designs than Father since she was five then?"</p><p>Marinette blushed at that. "Oh my god he <em>didn't</em>. I am...so sorry." <em>I'm going to kill that boy for using me to insult his</em> <em>uncle</em>.</p><p>"No, it was hilarious, I promise!" he insisted, and the snickering as he said that seemed to support it. "Honestly...I'm glad he has friends he cares about so much. Especially since..." He hesitated, and it was like a shadow fell over the conversation. Marinette's blush faded as the mood fell, because she knew exactly what Adrien was talking about. "Uh...how is he doing, by the way? We...haven't talked. In a while."</p><p>"He's...he's doing better." She sighed. "It's not my place to give you details or anything but...he's okay. He'll be okay." Then, with a smile, she added, "I think he was actually worried about you actually, considering all the akumatizations that happened here. You know he'd never admit it though."</p><p>Adrien let out a laugh. "Yeah, that's Felix for you."</p><p>The two of them snickered together, before Adrien asked, "So you're a designer then? You must be really good, for Felix to bring it up."</p><p>She smiled. "Yeah, I love designing and making my own clothes!" She began rocking on her heels, continuing, "I like making everyday clothes mostly, things that are comfortable and look cute, but I recently got a commission for an evening gown and it is so much fun to just go all out sometimes! And I've actually gotten really invested in costume design thanks to a specific customer of mine. He always wants the craziest looking clothes and honestly his commissions are so fun because I get to experiment in ways I normally can't? And I've also done some stuff for my friends, like for Allegra I gave her a dress for her birthday and it was so much fun and oh god I've been rambling-"</p><p>"It's okay," Adrien assured her, a delighted grin on his face. "I think it's really cool how passionate you are about it."</p><p>"...Thanks." She smiled at him brightly. "What about you? What are things you enjoy?"</p><p>He blinked, as if surprised, before admitting, "I...I'm still trying to figure that out, honestly." Then, a bit shyly, "I do really like playing video games?"</p><p>"Really?" Marinette grinned. "What kind of games do you like?"</p><p>"All sorts," he admitted, smiling. "One of my favorites is Ultra Mecha Strike-"</p><p>"You play UMS too?!" she interrupted, excited, before squeaking and clapping a hand over her mouth, and he blinked before cracking up. And Marinette flushed with embarrassment before giggling herself.</p><p>"We should definitely play against each other some time," Adrien offered. "I mostly play with Nino or Max, but Max and I usually play cooperative instead of competitive and Nino's not much of a match."</p><p>"Oh prepare to get your butt kicked," she challenged, smirking, and Adrien looked absolutely delighted at that. "In fact..." She pulled her phone out from her purse, opening it up to the contacts before passing it to him. "Here. This way we can arrange something so we can play together some time. Sound good?"</p><p>He looked somewhat surprised, before smiling, taking her phone and quickly typing in his number and handing it back. "Yeah...yeah, I'd really like that!"</p><p>"Awesome!" She thought over the contact name for a bit, before typing in "UMS Buddy" for lack of a better term yet. Then, she quickly shot him a text message, causing his phone to ding in his pocket.</p><p>Before either of them could say anything else, there was a honk from the street, and they turned to see a limo out front, which she guessed was there for Adrien.</p><p>"Oh...I've got to go."</p><p>She nodded in understanding. "Alright. We can text later, figure out a good time to meet up for UMS?"</p><p>He smiled, answering, "Yeah, absolutely. Uh...later, Marinette!"</p><p>"Later!"</p><p>She waved to him as he walked down the steps, soon climbing into the back of the limo and waving once before shutting the door and zipping away. And only a few moments later her phone buzzed in her hands.</p><p>
  <em>UMS Buddy: It's going to be the fight of your life.</em>
</p><p>And she laughed, shaking her head and shooting back a text message just as a familiar silver car pulled out to the front of the school, the window rolling down and two heads sticking out of it.</p><p>"Let's go, Mari!" Claude shouted, and Marinette grinned, nearly tripping as she ran down the steps towards her friends.</p><p>
  <em>Marinette: we'll see about that :)<br/>
</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>As Adrien sat in the car and thought about the conversation, he could feel the smile growing on his face. He hadn't expected to do more than thank Marinette for speaking up, but she had ended up being a lot more fun to talk to than he was expecting. And as he looked at the response Marinette had sent to his text, he couldn't help the way his cheeks flushed a bit.</p><p>God, the only other person who had made him feel like this was...</p><p>Oh.</p><p>
  <em>Oh no.</em>
</p><p>He buried his face in his hands, practically whining, "Not again."</p><p>And he could hear snickering from Plagg inside his shirt and he knew it meant he would <em>never</em> hear the end of it.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>Paparazzi: hey lila</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Paparazzi: why did you lie about being red piper?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>stay foxy: who said I lied?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>stay foxy: obviously Ladybug had to find a different fox, but she probably didn't want to risk my identity getting out so she had the fox use an illusion to look like me when I'm transformed</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Paparazzi: right. of course.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>stay foxy: c'mon Alya, would I ever lie to you?</em>
</p><p>Alya stared at her phone, a frown on her face as she did. Her thumbs hovered over the keyboard on her screen, as she mentally tried to figure out what to say, how to word her doubts without attacking her friend, how to answer this without bringing her beliefs crashing down.</p><p>Marinette had made a point earlier, one that couldn't be excused by pretty words. And Alya had seen Red Piper right there with her and Nino, talking with the other heroes, acting just the same she always had when she showed up. And how would Ladybug have gotten the fox miraculous in the first place if Alya had gotten to the akumatized Lila long before she could have?</p><p>But Lila wasn't a liar. She couldn't be. If she was...if she was, then that meant more than Alya having to rethink her opinion on her. That would mean that <em>Alya</em> had made a huge mistake, one she couldn't make up for. That would mean that <em>Alya</em> had published lies on her blog, after promising to share the truth. That would mean that <em>Alya</em> had been dragged into advocating and defending someone who had been using her the whole time.</p><p>That would mean that <em>Alya</em> had done something she had promised she wouldn't do, right back when she had first started coming to this school, for no good reason at all.</p><p>No...no, of course not. It was just an innocent mistake. Besides, even if Lila had lied about this, that didn't mean she had lied about everything else, right?</p><p>...Right?</p><p>
  <em>Paparazzi: nah i guess not</em>
</p><p>
  <em>stay foxy: that's right.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>stay foxy: I've gotta go now. the XY concert awaits!</em>
</p><p>Alya frowned, before sighing and tucking her phone away.</p><p>Everything was fine. Lila was honest, Alya had made the right decision, it was all fine.</p><p>It had to be.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>* Since Adrien didn't end up talking to Lila after her encounter with Marinette, he wasn't a target.<br/>* One of the side-effects to her former relationship with Chloé is that Sabrina is a bit too willing to throw herself in the line of fire for friends. It is a habit she was trying to break before Lila showed up and ruined her newly developed social life.<br/>* Yes, I know leaving Sabrina on the floor was a bad idea, but in all fairness Ladybug didn't have time to do anything else.<br/>* Me: Aw hell yeah, let's put on a show for Alya and Nino and pepper it with subtle hints that something is off about this fight.<br/>Me: ...<br/>Me: Uh...how do you write fight scenes again?<br/>* As you can tell, I gave up.<br/>* Now I won't say Marinette was outright planning on proving Lila wasn't Red Piper when she and Chat Noir came up with their plan...but I also won't say that she wasn't subconsciously taking it into consideration.<br/>* Adrien has a type. That time is dark haired girls who are fun to talk to but can also kick his ass.<br/>* Honestly, the name Lila has for Alya in her phone is pretty telling for how Lila actually views Alya. And since I probably won't be featuring the other text names I've come up with, Lila has Nino as "Alya's BF" and Adrien as "My Adrien &lt;3".</p><p>ok i'm going to bed now</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Flashback I</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marinette and friends hang out before the school year begins.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>In between akuma chapters I will be putting either flashbacks to past events or interludes about what happens in between akumas. Hope you enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"All I'm saying is that together, we could all totally kill Hawk Moth."</p><p>Alan let out a sigh. "Allegra, we don't even know where in Paris he is?"</p><p>Allegra crossed her arms from her perch on the stairs to Marinette's loft bed, insisting, "We can find him. Besides, he deserves it for creating an akuma called <em>Noisemaker</em> at <em>three in the morning</em>." The disgust in her voice at that was so theatrical Marinette couldn't help but let out a snort.</p><p>"You could probably pinpoint a rough idea of his location using the locations of akumatizations," Felix noted, not even looking up from his phone as he did.</p><p>"Ha! Exactly!" Allegra crowed, crossing her arms with a smirk. "So what I'm suggesting is that we team up, maybe even recruit Ladybug and Chat Noir, find Hawk Moth, and kill him. And then we never have to lay awake until six in the morning listening to the incessant whistles and honks of a goddamn noise machine akuma."</p><p>"If Ladybug and Chat Noir haven't found him yet, what makes you think we can?" Claude called from the floor. "Not that I'm saying your plan is a bad one. I'm all down for recreating Caesar on the resident super terrorist. But what do we have that Ladybug and Chat Noir don't have to help us track down Hawk Moth?"</p><p><em>Numbers and less than 50% of those numbers busy trying to finish two major commissions by the end of them month while also preparing to go to a new school and maintain an intense double life,</em> Marinette thought to herself as she carefully set to work again. These particular parts of this dress needed to be hand-stitched, but all the best for Clara Nightingale, who was so much nicer than Marinette had expected and had been really excited after helping Marinette come up with this design for her next music video. <em>And I'm pretty sure the existence of night time akuma are specifically to spite our attempts to track him down, at this point.</em></p><p>"Are you going to be okay, Mari?" Allegra suddenly asked, and Marinette paused, looking up from her work in slight confusion. "You're about to be in the line of fire soon enough. That seems pretty terrifying."</p><p>Alan nodded, sitting up as he added, "Yeah, you're going to be dealing with a lot more akumas soon enough."</p><p><em>Well I was already dealing with them, but I can't exactly say that</em>. She could see all of them giving her concerned looks, even Felix (though he was doing his best to try and keep his normal unaffected expression as if he really thought he could hide anything from her after <em>years</em> of friendship), and all possible snarky responses flew out the window.</p><p>She took a deep breath, before answering, "It is a bit intimidating, I guess. Going to the school so many of the akumas came from. But...I'll be okay, guys. I'll do what I can to stay safe and I'll keep you posted."</p><p>It wasn't even a lie, not really. She was intimidated by the prospect, and she would be doing what she could to remain safe, even if just for the sake of making sure there was still a Ladybug to save the day at the end.</p><p>That didn't mean it didn't feel somewhat like a lie anyway.</p>
<hr/><p>"I think I've figured out a way to get to akuma battles faster," Marinette remarked after she and Chat Noir had settled onto a roof, and he looked up at her with surprise.</p><p>"Really?"</p><p>She nodded. "Yeah. I can't tell you the details, since it will involve civilian me-" He gave an understanding nod there. "-but hopefully we'll be able to avoid problems like what happened with Horrificator."</p><p>He winced, remembering that fight particularly vividly. "Yeah, that's a good thing." Then, he blinked. "Oh, I actually got you something, since I believe a special occasion is coming up and I wasn't sure we'd be able to meet up that night." She gave him a look, and with a sheepish laugh he admitted, "And also I couldn't wait." He opened up his staff, reaching in and pulling out a white box, passing it to her.</p><p>She took the box, her eyes wide as she carefully opened it. Inside was a necklace, a yellow rose with a golden stem and leaf, dangling from a delicate gold chain, and she blinked with surprise before letting out a laugh, shaking her head and smiling fondly as she carefully removed it from the box and put it on, liking the way the gold caught the dim street lights.</p><p>She knew what the necklace meant, and she appreciated it.</p><p>"Thanks kitty." Then, with a grin, she added, "I got something for you too, actually." She opened her yoyo and withdrew from it a green scarf. Chat Noir let out a dramatic gasp as he took it carefully in his claws, before immediately rubbing his face in it.</p><p>"It's so soft," he gasped, amazed, and Marinette let out a giggle at his ridiculousness. "Thank you, I love it."</p><p>"There's actually more," she told him, taking one end of the scarf and flipping it over to point to a corner, and Chat Noir looked over at it and gasped in delight at the black cat there, posed as if about to pounce.</p><p>"I wanted to make something you could wear in your civilian life but that still had a little something of Chat Noir in it," she explained. "You mentioned once that you didn't feel like you were as brave as a civilian. I thought I'd make something to remind you that, no matter if you're transformed or not, you're always Chat Noir. You're one of my best friends, and probably the bravest person I know, so I made this so maybe you could feel a bit braver when you can't wear the mask."</p><p>He looked up at her, eyes practically watering, before pulling her into a hug. "Thank you, my lady. I...thank you."</p><p>And she smiled, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing him. "No problem, Chat Noir."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>* Noisemaker was a little kid who didn't want to go to sleep and decided to make that everyone's problem...and then Hawk Moth akumatized them<br/>* This is not the first time Allegra has plotted Hawk Moth's murder.<br/>* Horrificator sealed everyone in, but also kept Ladybug out in this AU, so Chat Noir had to use Cataclysm in order to let Ladybug in so they could handle the threat. Which meant he had to duck into a broom closet to detransform and feed Plagg while Ladybug (and the classmates) held off Horrificator. It was inconvenient and at ground zero for most akumatizations, so as a result it is the main akuma they mention when discussing the inconvenience of Ladybug being further away from the main source of the akumas.<br/>* Yellow roses represent friendship, as well as being a token of appreciation for someone.<br/>* Also that necklace is secretly kinda expensive, though Marinette won't realize that until after their identities are revealed.<br/>* Marinette didn't do her hidden signature on the scarf btw.<br/>* I left the special occasion vague but it was semi-intended to be the anniversary of their first akuma battle and also them becoming friends.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Animaestro</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Marinette goes to a premiere with her friends and makes a new one. Also there's an akuma, but no one cares.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am <em>so</em> sorry, this is horribly late, sorry.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Mari Mari Mari Mari Mari Mari Ma-"</p><p>Marinette groaned, rubbing her eyes and looking up to see Allegra sitting next to her on her bed, bouncing excitedly.</p><p>"It's too early, go back to sleep," Marinette grumbled, rolling over and shoving a pillow over her head, only for Allegra to snatch the pillow and gently smack her in the back with it.</p><p>"It's the day of the premiere, Mari!" Allegra reminded her, excitement in her voice, but Marinette simply pulled her blanket up over her head, wanting to go back to sleep.</p><p>Then she proceeded to shoot awake, sitting up as she realized, "SHIT, WE HAVE TO GET READY!"</p><p>Both girls proceeded to race down the steps to the trap door, Marinette opening it and Allegra racing to the bathroom, shouting, "I call first shower!"</p><p>"Jerk!" Marinette shouted back just as Allegra slammed the door to the bathroom. She theatrically flopped on the couch, mock glaring at the wall for a bit before letting out a snort.</p><p>"I'm still a little surprised that you decided not to go as Ladybug," Tikki admitted, zipping out of Marinette's pocket once the coast was clear.</p><p>Marinette laughed, admitting, "Well maybe I would get VIP treatment, but Chat Noir isn't going to be there and I think I'd rather hang out with my friends than just kind of be a prop at the party, you know?" She shrugged, adding a bit more solemnly, "And anyway, this is the first public appearance Felix and Miss Amelie have made since what happened last year. That was the reason Ms. Amelie got the rest of us tickets."</p><p>Tikki nodded in understanding, her expression sad. "That's a good point."</p><p>They sat in silence for a bit, before Tikki added, "On the bright side, you did a really good job with everyone's clothes for the premiere. They all look so pretty!"</p><p>"Thanks Tikki," Marinette said, smiling brightly. "It took a lot of work to get everything done, but I'm really proud of everything I've made." Then she let out a tired sigh. "But it was soooo much work, and that's not even mentioning that I had to make Jagged's jacket too. I think I've lost years of my life to those outfits."</p><p>Tikki giggled, nuzzling Marinette's cheek affectionately. "Don't worry, Marinette. You did amazing."</p>
<hr/><p>Marinette had just finished blow-drying her hair when Alan and Claude burst in, and it was immediately chaos. Allegra and Claude were jumping excitedly, while Alan was shaking his head at them even as he was bouncing excitedly.</p><p>"Alright!" Marinette called, and they all jumped to attention, Allegra and Claude both simultaneously saluting as they did, and she did her best not to laugh. "Ms. Amelie and Felix will be here at four to get us! Alan, you're handling painting our nails, Allegra, you're on hair and make-up. Claude, you're music and also keeping track of time, because everyone know I can't do that. And I'll be making sure everyone's clothes fit and handling accessories. Sound good?"</p><p>"Sir yes sir!" Allegra and Claude chorused, and Marinette and Alan cracked up at that.</p><p>With that, the four of them set to work, with all the coordination of people who had known each other for a long time and had done this before. And, as Marinette pulled the clothes out from her wardrobe and checked over them one last time, she couldn't help the excitement that she felt.</p><p>There were going to have a great time, if she had any say in it.</p>
<hr/><p>"Are you sure you don't want to come, Father?" Adrien asked, glancing over at the tablet Nathalie was holding as he got dressed. "Aunt Amelie and Felix are going to be there after all."</p><p>Father let out a scoff, and Adrien sighed, shaking his head as he started tying his tie.</p><p>He had tried to advocate for a red suit jacket, since this was a premiere for a movie about Ladybug and Chat Noir, but Father had refused, and so now Adrien was wearing his black and dark grey ensemble, unable to hide the disappointment as he did. Sure, lots of people would be wearing tributes to Ladybug at the premiere, but he had wanted to wear something in honor of his partner despite all that. Instead he was wearing a fairly bland looking outfit that didn't even have any color, and the disappointing thing was that this was somewhat of a bold choice by his father considering the different patterns on the jacket and tie.</p><p>Yeah, Felix probably had a point about Father's designs.</p><p>On the bright side, Lila wasn't going to be there. All it had taken was Adrien pointing out how much this movie would be honoring the heroes and Lila had suddenly had other plans to keep her from asking Father to be his plus one.</p><p>At very least Kagami would be there, so he would definitely be having more fun than a lot of events he had to go to. And he'd finally have a chance to talk to Felix after everything.</p><p>"I expect you to behave to the usual standards," Father remarked, and the underlying threat of consequences if he didn't made Adrien cringe.</p><p>"Yes Father," he answered, making sure his tie was perfectly straight.</p><p>He wished he could go as Chat Noir instead. Maybe then he'd actually be able to have fun.</p>
<hr/><p>Chloé stood in her full length mirror, turning this way and that to look at her dress before giving herself a confident smirk.</p><p>A custom Ladybug dress, only one of its kind, and it was just for her. She bet no one else was going to have a dress even close to what hers looked like.</p><p>She glanced behind her through the mirror, as if expecting to see someone sitting on her bed, about to gush about how pretty she looked. But there was no one there. She was alone in her room.</p><p>Her smirk fell at that realization, and she frowned at herself. It was ridiculous, utterly ridiculous. She couldn't believe she was still caught up on that, still missing <em>that girl</em> as if she hadn't <em>betrayed her</em>. Betrayed her and left her...</p><p>
  <em>"I'm done! All you've done is hurt me and use me and make me do your dirty work, and I can't do this anymore! Not when you clearly don't care about anyone but yourself!"</em>
</p><p>Chloé turned, looking out at the giant room around her, and sighed.</p><p>She was alone.</p>
<hr/><p>The red carpet experience was a bit awkward, as far as Adrien was concerned. It was nice to be acknowledged for talents other than posing in front of a camera, and honestly voicing himself in the movie was an amazing and honestly hilarious experience, but the sheer number of flashing lights made his head hurt slightly, and he did his best to just pose for the last few photos at the entrance before hurrying more properly inside, his eyes catching the refreshments table. Glancing around, he gave a devious grin and headed over to the table.</p><p>"Is it alright if I grab some of these?" he asked, gesturing to the macarons.</p><p>The man at the table, a huge man with a bushy brown mustache, gave him a warm, friendly smile, answering, "Absolutely, take as many as you want! I'm a baker, it's the yeast I can do."</p><p>Adrien's eyes lit up. "Well I hear baking is a trend that's on the rise."</p><p>The man's smile became a mischievous grin, and he turned and called to the woman (who judging by her uniform was also working the table), "Sabine! I've found another punner!"</p><p>"Oh good, now there's two of you," the woman, Sabine, responded, shaking her head before giving him a smile and a wave. "Hello, feel free to help yourself. We also have petit fours over here."</p><p>He nodded, saying, "Thank you," before grabbing a few macarons, taking a bite out of one before his eyes went wide, because <em>holy shit these were delicious</em>.</p><p>"These are really good," he said, once he finished the ones he had grabbed. "Thank you so much!"</p><p>"Thank you for being so polite," Sabine responded, shaking her head. "Honestly, some people here think that just because they are celebrities they can talk so rudely to the rest of us."</p><p>He winced sympathetically. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that."</p><p>She nodded, about to say something else when the man beside her said, "Look, there's Marinette and her friends!"</p><p>Adrien jumped, whirling around to look at the entrance, and his eyes immediately landed on the familiar girl, standing there, a sweet smile on her face as she waved to the cameras. And his breath caught in his throat as he took in the black dress with glittery lace, the green lining of the hi-lo skirt and the sash around her waist, the gold bell necklace and the black ring on her finger.</p><p>She was wearing <em>Chat Noir's colors</em>. And she looked good in them.</p><p>He could practically hear Plagg snickering from inside his jacket, but he didn't care. He was...impressed. Yeah. That was the word. Of course.</p><p>Maybe if he thought it enough times he'd actually convince himself.</p><p>"Adrien," Nathalie's voice spoke up, and he jumped, turning to see her standing there in her black dress, her tablet tucked under her arm. "The Tsurugis will be here soon. You and your father will greet them once they arrive, and then you are free to mingle as you want."</p><p>"R-Right," he answered, cheeks flushing as he realized he was stuttering.</p>
<hr/><p>Marinette was still a bit dazed from all the camera flashes, and her mouth was starting to hurt from all the smiling she had done.</p><p>"How was your first red carpet experience?" Ms. Amelie asked, smiling at the group. Felix rolled his eyes at the question, but otherwise didn't say anything.</p><p>"Bright," Marinette answered, causing Ms. Amelie to let out an inelegant snort.</p><p>"Yeah, I've still got splotches in my vision," Alan remarked, blinking somewhat as if trying to get rid of them.</p><p>Felix sighed. "You get used to it after a few movie premieres."</p><p>"Well I definitely felt confident in my Marinette original," Allegra remarked, sounding like she was speaking in an infomercial, and Marinette blushed a bit before shoving her arm. "Don't worry, Mari. Your work is awesome and I bet all of them out there agreed."</p><p>Claude nodded, throwing an arm over Marinette's shoulders and adding, "Yeah! I've never felt so dapper in my life!"</p><p>She buried her face in her hands, mumbling, "Stop it, guys."</p><p>"Oh Felix, your cousin is here!" Ms. Amelie spoke up, and Marinette looked up to see Felix's expression grow microscopically more distressed. Then, she turned to see Adrien over by the door, bowing to a girl around their age and a woman who was presumably her mother.</p><p>"...Wow, Gabriel Agreste went really crazy with that outfit," Marinette remarked, and Felix glanced over at her, surprised. "I don't see any white on it at all."</p><p>Allegra, Claude, and Alan began snickering, and Ms. Amelie let out a snort. Felix shook his head, but seemed to relax somewhat.</p><p>"Of course, it appears my dear brother-in-law isn't here, not to anyone's surprise," Ms. Amelie remarked, rolling her eyes. "Which unfortunately means I won't have the option to criticize his fashion sense to his face. Tragic, I know." She turned to the kids, continuing, "I do have some business I have to attend to while I'm here, so we'll meet up in our seats during the film. For now, you're free to wander around, grab food, and upset all the uptight celebrities who take things too seriously. Keep track of any old money rich people who say 'I never!' because I will be scoring you."</p><p>"Yes ma'am," all of the chorused, except for Felix, who rolled his eyes and said, "Thank you, Mother."</p><p>"Alright, love you all, stay safe!"</p><p>Ms. Amelie left to do business/schmooze, and Felix looked at all of them, saying, "Embarrass me at your peril, you absolute hooligans."</p><p>"I'm going to share your baby pictures with Jagged Stone," Alan deadpanned, and Marinette giggled as Felix narrowed his eyes at him, as if that would keep any of them from noticing the way his lips twitched at the comment.</p><p>"You're on thin ice, Alan," he said, before giving a wary glance over to Adrien, who had moved with the girl he had been greeting earlier over to the refreshment table, talking with Marinette's parents. Marinette frowned, a bit concerned.</p><p>She was well aware that Felix's feelings towards Adrien were...complicated, right now. He was bitter and angry, as much as he still cared about his cousin, and Marinette couldn't exactly blame him. But she also couldn't help but see that it wasn't entirely fair to Adrien. Which left a very confusing and awkward middle ground to deal with there.</p><p>She looked over to Claude, making a slight shooing gesture, and he nodded before grabbing Allegra and Alan's arms and pulling them off to go explore, leaving Marinette and Felix by themselves.</p><p>Once she was sure they had some pseudo-privacy, she lightly elbowed Felix's arm, and he gave her an annoyed look that quickly fell into confusion as she gave him a reassuring smile.</p><p>"You don't have to, if you don't want to, but I think you should talk to him," she said quietly, and he scowled slightly. "C'mon, hear me out."</p><p>"I doubt he's very interested in how I feel about things," Felix remarked, his voice cold and bitter, and Marinette frowned.</p><p>"You know, the first thing he asked me when he learned that we were friends was how you were doing," she told him, and he blinked. "And honestly...I think you've been wanting an explanation, or at least <em>something</em> for months now. But he's not going to be the one to approach first, and you know that." <em>I honestly don't think Adrien even realizes he has the right to speak up. And not just about the weirdness between him and Felix. </em>"I think you'll feel better if you finally just talk to him, because then you won't have to be looking for an explanation. You'll be able to deal with it instead of just stewing in how upset you are."</p><p>Felix looked at her for a bit, then sighed. "I don't know why I'm ever surprised when you manage to rip apart any excuses I have. You've been like this for years."</p><p>She laughed, shrugging. "That's what we do, isn't it? We remind each other how to people correctly."</p><p>He snorted. "Like when I had to stop you from spiraling when you learned this was a red carpet event?"</p><p>She elbowed him again, a little harder this time, and he snickered.</p><p>"Jerk."</p><p>"I can't believe it took you nine years to notice," he remarked, and she rolled her eyes at him. Then, after a moment, he said, "I would rather talk to him alone, personally."</p><p>Marinette glanced over at Adrien and his friend, who were still by the table, before saying, "Alright, I think that can be arranged."</p>
<hr/><p>"Hmm...I agree she is attractive," Kagami remarked, causing Adrien to let out a high-pitched whine as he buried his face in his hands. "Though it's ridiculous for you to be so nervous over approaching her."</p><p>Adrien groaned, dropping his hands as he explained, "Yes, but what if I screw it up? What if I say or do something wrong and she hates me forever because I just...don't know how to talk to people?"</p><p>She sighed, shaking her head at her friend. He was being ridiculous, as far as she was concerned. "You've faced me head-on when you had no chance of victory, but now you can't compliment a girl on her dress? That seems pretty ridiculous to me." Then, she smirked, saying, "Maybe I should approach her instead, give you time to figure out what you want to say?"</p><p>He made a face at that. "I don't like that expression."</p><p>She shrugged. "I'm just saying, if it comes down to it and you aren't willing to speak up, I may make a move."</p><p>"Hey," Adrien said, giving her a dirty look, and she snorted. "You're the worst."</p><p>"No, I'm the best," she answered, and he rolled his eyes. "And I'm making a threat. Say something to her today or I will."</p><p>Before he could say anything in response, she glanced over to the girl and noticed her walking over, a blond boy in a light grey suit right on her heels, and remarked, "She's heading this way."</p><p>He let out an actual squeak, and it was so ridiculous she struggled not to laugh as she turned more properly over to the two approaching.</p><p>"Oh, Felix! Ma-Marinette!" Adrien stammered, before leaning one hand on the table as if trying to look cool. "Uh, what's up?"</p><p>Kagami rolled her eyes as Marinette let out a snort (<em>cute</em>), before saying, "Just wanted to come over and say hi." Then, she looked over at Kagami and stuck out her hand, saying, "Hi, I don't believe we've met?"</p><p>"We haven't," Kagami answered, shaking Marinette's hand. "Kagami Tsurugi. Adrien and I are on the same fencing team."</p><p>"Really?" Marinette asked, surprised. "That's really cool." Then, almost a bit shyly, she added, "I don't actually know much about fencing. Do you think you could explain it to me?"</p><p>"I could-" Adrien began, only to let out a squawk as Felix grabbed his arm, pulling him away. "Felix, what-?"</p><p>"You can simp later."</p><p>"<em>How do you know that word?</em>" he asked, slight horror in his voice, and Kagami stared as Felix ignored the question, just dragging Adrien off towards the men's restroom.</p><p>"Is he...kidnapping Adrien?" she asked, glancing at Marinette in slight concern.</p><p>Marinette smiled, waving it off. "It's fine, they just need to talk things out. I was going to distract you so he could talk to Adrien alone, but it looks like he decided to skip all that." Then, giving Kagami a hopeful look, she added, "I was actually interested in hearing about fencing though?"</p><p>
  <em>...Cute.</em>
</p><p>"Well then...I'd be happy to explain the rules then," Kagami answered, smiling a bit.</p><p>Adrien would...probably be fine.</p>
<hr/><p>"So, should we say anything about Felix kidnapping his cousin?" Allegra asked, watching the scene from where she, Claude, and Alan were standing. They had just had a conversation with an old money movie star who had been strangely delighted by all their controversial opinions on her old movies, but she had been called away by an old friend and now it was just the three of them.</p><p>"Nah," Claude answered with a shrug, throwing his arms over Alan and Allegra's shoulders. "If Mari isn't saying anything, it's probably fine."</p><p>"Heh, fair enough." Allegra looked around at the other guests, taking note of one man who seemed to be greatly annoyed in a conversation with another, younger actress. "Hey guys, maybe we should keep an eye on that guy over there?" She subtly gestured to the irritated man, and Alan and Claude immediately glanced over to him. "Seems like he might be at risk of an akuma?"</p><p>Alan frowned, watching as the man stormed off, to the confusion of the actress he was speaking to. "Maybe one of us can go talk to him, see if we can cheer him up?"</p><p>Allegra thought about that briefly, before shrugging. "Maybe? But if he's one of those stuffy adults Amelie warned us about, then we might just make it worse?"</p><p>"Nah, we're a delight, that lady from before just said so," Claude assured them both cheerfully. Then, he glanced at her, adding, "Allegra, you've been working for longer than we have. I think it should be your call?"</p><p>She grimaced. She was still new to this idea of taking the lead among the three of them, since before the whole Red Piper thing it had been pretty rare for them to not have Mari or Felix around to take the lead. And even then, there was rarely an occasion where any of them would need to take the lead. But now...now she and these two were the only ones who knew the truth about their hero identities, and now they looked to her for advice and to make calls when it came to things that had to do with their hero identities.</p><p>Allegra didn't really know how Ladybug did it, whenever she called them and had to act as leader. She didn't envy her the position.</p><p>"...Claude, why don't you start a conversation with him, see if you can ease him into calming down," she explained quietly. "Alan, you and I will keep an eye out for butterflies. Be prepared to get people to safety if an akuma shows up. If we're lucky, there's nothing to worry about, but if not then we'll have at least made things easier for Ladybug and Chat Noir when they get here. Sound good?"</p><p>"You got it, Legs," Claude said with a salute and a smirk.</p><p>"Yeah yeah, get a move on Clown," she sniped back, waving him off as he headed over to the irritated guy from earlier. Then she glanced at Alan, who nodded and headed over to hang out by that entrance, and that left her alone.</p><p>She took a deep breath, before looking around and noticing Jagged Stone over by the doors to the theater, talking with Ms. Rolling. Might as well have an excuse.</p><p>"Hey Mr. Stone!" she greeted, waving as she approached, and he looked over and grinned.</p><p>"Oh hey, you're one of Marinette's friends!" He closed his eyes, screwing up his face as he thought, then grinned and snapped his fingers, saying, "Allegra! Like allegro!"</p><p>"Yep!" she answered with a nod, unable to help the note of victory that he actually remembered her name from when Marinette introduced them. "You excited for the movie too?"</p><p>As Jagged Stone began gushing about Ladybug and how cool it was that she was getting a movie, Allegra made sure to keep Alan and Claude within her line of sight. Hopefully, things would be okay.</p><p>Hopefully.</p>
<hr/><p>"I'm pretty sure you understand why we need to talk," Felix spoke up after they entered the bathroom, and Adrien couldn't help but wince, unable to meet his eyes.</p><p>"Yeah," he answered quietly. "Uh...I guess I should start by saying I'm sorry."</p><p>Felix didn't say anything, just narrowing his eyes for a moment before looking towards the mirror, a grimace on his face. "What happened?"</p><p>Adrien blinked, before shutting his eyes and sighing. "I...Father said I couldn't go." He looked over at his cousin, before adding quietly, "And he scheduled two photo shoots that day, one after the other, to make sure I wouldn't sneak out."</p><p>Felix took a shallow breath at that, and Adrien looked at the floor.</p><p>It felt like an excuse, to him. Amelie had approached Gabriel after Mom...after she disappeared, offering to help with the search. Felix had let him literally cry on his shoulder, despite the fact that he wasn't very good with emotional situations. And yet, when they had needed him, Father had said no, and he...he hadn't even tried to escape.</p><p>Adrien wished he could be Chat Noir full time. Adrien Agreste was a coward, and Chat Noir was brave enough to face anything.</p><p>"It was...frustrating," Felix began, his voice shaking in a way that told Adrien it was probably more than just <em>frustrating</em>. "It felt unfair, that I was there for you when you were grieving but when my own father was dead...you were nowhere to be found." He clenched the side of the sink. "I assumed your father had something to do with it, but I...didn't care. I was just upset."</p><p>"Yeah, I don't blame you," Adrien muttered, absently adjusting the cuff of his jacket. "I'm sorry."</p><p>It was silent for a moment, as it was pretty clear neither of them really knew what to say. Adrien clenched his fists, about to say something anyway, when suddenly the door opened, and a dark haired man rushed in, pushing him aside and heading into a stall. He was breathing heavily, as if trying to keep himself composed.</p><p>Felix and Adrien looked at each other, as if unsure what to do about that.</p><p>"Do you...want to keep talking about this somewhere else?"</p><p>"Yes, I would prefer to keep this conversation between us."</p><p>"...Alright. Lead the way, then."</p>
<hr/><p>"Ugh," Chloé grumbled, approaching the refreshment table and looking at the macarons suspiciously. Apparently they had hired that bakery by the school instead of one of the more prestigious caterers like her Daddy usually got, and she wasn't really interested in eating touristy poor people food.</p><p>"Would you like anything?" the woman at the table asked, and Chloé was about to snap when she hesitated. <em>What would Mom do in this situation?</em></p><p>...Audrey Bourgeois would be absolutely offended at the insinuation that she'd ever eat food that she didn't explicitly approve of, and she would tell the woman that. She would also have a harsh word with the person in charge and inform them that the woman should be fired and blackballed from the catering industry. Probably.</p><p>"...Fine," she said with a dramatic sigh, taking a macaron from the top of the plate and taking a tiny bite.</p><p>Then, eyes wide, she took another.</p><p>Then she grabbed a handful, saying, "Oh my god, these are so good!"</p><p>The woman smiled proudly, saying, "Thank you, my husband and I made them." She gestured over to the huge buff man who was walking around with a platter of macarons, serving them to guests as he did. Chloé didn't care much about that though, she just wanted more of these <em>amazing</em> baked goods.</p><p>She grabbed a few more, only for the woman to add, "We do have plates, if you'd like one?"</p><p>"Uh...yes! Absolutely!" She took the plate from the woman and dropped her pile of macarons on it, before looking around and grabbing a couple petit fours, and a drink while she was at it. Then, she set to work eating, humming in delight. Then, thinking again to her "What wouldn't Mom do?" question, she said, "Uh...thanks?"</p><p>"You're absolutely welcome," the woman told her, smiling warmly in a way that Chloé had only ever seen Ms. Bustier or Adrien's mom smile before. "I love your dress, by the way. It looks very beautiful on you."</p><p>She smiled, turning back and forth so the skirt would swish. "Thank you! I got it custom made for the event!" Then, a bit disappointedly, she admitted, "I really hoped Ladybug would be here, honestly. She's <em>so</em> cool and I really wanted her to see it." She pouted a bit, before eating another macaron. "Whatever, I just hope this movie is good. Only the best for the coolest hero in Paris, after all."</p><p>"I feel like Chat Noir would be disappointed to not be included there," a voice spoke up, and Chloé looked over to see the new girl from school and that girl from Adrien's fencing class, and inwardly she winced at the realization that she had no idea what their names were.</p><p>"Hmph...fair enough," she admitted. Part of her was...well aware why she liked Ladybug more than Chat Noir, but she absolutely couldn't just <em>say that</em>. Especially at an event as public as this one. Looking over the girls' outfits, she took note of the new girl's dress and asked, "Where'd you get the Chat Noir dress done, anyway? I've never seen one like that before." There wasn't as much Chat Noir merch out there, after all, and nothing as well made as that.</p><p>"Oh, I made it," the new girl explained, and the fencing girl blinked, looking surprised. She laughed a bit awkwardly, admitting, "It was a lot of work, honestly, and I also had another dress, two suits, and a suit jacket to work on too. I'm just lucky I got as much heads up about this event as I did, or I definitely wouldn't have had time to make everything."</p><p>Chloé looked over the dress, noting the accessories and the way her hair was done up, before pulling snapping her ladybug pochette open and pulling her phone out. Then, pulling open Instagram, she grabbed the new girl's arm and pulled her over, saying, "Smile!"</p><p>"Huh?" the new girl asked, startled and off-balance, before getting with the program and giving a somewhat confused smile to the phone, and Chloé quickly snapped the photo before releasing her.</p><p>"What's your Instagram, I can tag you," she continued, picking out the filter that made the red of her dress pop best before humming over the caption.</p><p>The new girl, surprised, just asked, "What?"</p><p>Chloé smirked. "Well <em>obviously</em> you can't have Ladybug without Chat Noir. Duh. Now, Instagram?"</p><p>"Oh, uh...marinettedesigned," she answered, still seeming somewhat surprised.</p><p>She nodded, captioning the picture with, "Found a black cat among the ladybugs. What luck!" Then, she tagged the new girl (probably Marinette, judging by the username), and posted it with a smile. Then, out of curiosity, she opened up Marinette's Instagram (public, that was good) and scrolled through, noting progress photos and pictures of other outfits that, judging by the captions, she had also made.</p><p>...<em>Perfect.</em></p><p>"Do you take commissions?"</p><p>"...Yeah?" Marinette answered, tilting her head cutely. "Are you interested?"</p><p>Chloé hummed. "I'm assuming a budding fashion designer knows about Audrey Bourgeois, right?"</p><p>Marinette kind of rolled her eyes, saying, "Yeah, it's hard not to when she's such a big name in the fashion industry and she started turning people into glitter statues a few months ago."</p><p>"What do you think of her fashion opinions?"</p><p>"Uh..." She frowned a bit at that. "Do you want an honest opinion?"</p><p>"Absolutely."</p><p>Marinette shrugged, admitting, "Sometimes I agree with her, but I think her opinions are a bit outdated? Her obsession with glitter is kind of ridiculous. I don't really mind sparkle, if you can't tell," and she gestured to her dress, with its sparkly black lace, "but she takes it to an extreme level. Like Gabriel Agreste, she doesn't seem willing to risk any color in her clothes, except gold, but she uses so much gold it just looks tacky." She crossed her arms, tapping her elbow lightly as she continued, "I think putting too much focus on what she thinks and likes when designing is ultimately holding the fashion industry back and keeping anyone from actually being willing to take risks. She definitely has her own opinions about what looks good and what doesn't, but she's not exactly objective with her critiques and just kind of wants everyone to cater to what she likes. I don't think calling her the Queen of Fashion is accurate."</p><p>The fencing girl looked a bit startled, as if she wasn't sure what to make of that. Marinette smiled a bit sheepishly at her.</p><p>"Sorry for rambling, I just have...a lot of opinions."</p><p>Chloé grinned. "No, what you just said was perfect." She leaned against the table, explaining, "Now listen. In a few months, my mother is having her birthday party. It's going to be a big name event, black tie, one of the biggest events in the fashion world." She smirked. "What I want is a dress. A dress that looks so good and is so much against what my mother likes, that she'll hate herself for liking it."</p><p>Marinette's eyes went wide. "Seriously?"</p><p>"Of course." She smirked. "We can discuss design later. But I'll cover the costs of whatever materials you need on top of the commission price, and I'll even invite you along as my plus one if you want to be there to watch her conniption."</p><p>"That's a lot of money and effort to spite your mother," the fencing girl remarked, frowning at that. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"</p><p>"Trust me, when it comes to my mother? Spiting her is worth the effort." Chloé pressed follow on Marinette's Instagram, saying, "I'll DM you on Instagram so we can discuss the details and costs. Sound good?"</p><p>Marinette frowned, as if uncertain, before shrugging and nodding. "Alright, if you're sure?"</p><p>"Great." Chloé took a sip of her drink, before saying, "I should probably go find Daddy now." She turned, about to head off, before adding, "Oh, and I like your dress. It's very cute."</p><p>As she walked away, she heard Marinette ask fencing girl, "What just happened?" And she let out a snort, shaking her head as she walked away.</p><p>Only for the door to crash open, startling her into dropping her plate, and a girl she didn't recognize shouted, "Everybody out! Akuma!"</p><p>Chloé blinked at the sudden chaos, before looking down at the floor where her petit fours and macarons now laid, broken and crushed, before growling in annoyance. "Aw c'mon! I didn't even <em>do anything!</em>"</p><p>
  <em>At least, not this time.</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh," Marinette groaned, flopping backwards on top of the nearby roof after that fight.</p><p>"Yeah," Chat Noir agreed, flopping down beside her. "Ugh."</p><p>The two looked at each other, before breaking out into snorts.</p><p>"Can you believe we fought an <em>actual magical girl?</em>" she asked, snickering. "And...and a giant unicorn?!"</p><p>"I nearly got murdered by a Goku clone!" Chat Noir added, and the two of them continued laughing. It was maybe slightly hysterical after a stressful battle, but honestly, the sheer goofiness of the fight more than made up for it now that they weren't in fear for their lives. Marinette would take it, honestly.</p><p>When they finally managed to calm down, Marinette continued, "Ugh, I really hoped it <em>wouldn't </em>happen today, you know?"</p><p>"Yeah, me too," he agreed, sighing. Then, a bit hesitantly, he asked, "Part of me is...terrified? Of going back where I was earlier? Because..." He sighed. "I'm a coward, I think."</p><p>"No you're not," she admonished him, reaching over to lightly whack him on the arm. "As someone who has fought akumas with you a hundred times over, you are definitely <em>not</em> a coward."</p><p>Chat Noir sighed. "Well the regular me is. The regular me just...he always screws things up, saying the wrong thing or not say anything at all when he should. And he...he ends up letting people down as a result." He sighed. "I don't think I'm a great person without the mask on."</p><p>Marinette frowned at that, sitting up and looking at him. He was staring off into the distance, his head tilted away from her, and she wondered if she was going to have to fight someone.</p><p>"Well...without the mask, I'm clumsy. All the time, in fact. I end up tripping over my feet a lot, and I've made several messes as a result." She shrugged. "I'm also not nearly as confident, and I second guess myself a lot. Sometimes I just spiral into an anxious mess because I keep overthinking everything. But..." She looked over at him and smiled. "I think one thing that helps me is remembering that the mask is just a mask. The miraculous might give me cool superpowers, but I'm always Ladybug, whether I'm transformed or not."</p><p>He frowned. "But...how do you manage that?"</p><p>"Well...I had to learn to trust myself," she said with a nod. "Trust myself to be able to do the right thing when it counts. That, no matter how scared I am, I'll remember to step forward and do the right thing. And sometimes I screw up."</p><p>"No," Chat Noir asked, in mock horror, and she nodded in faux seriousness.</p><p>"Yeah. So then...then I have to have the courage to own up to what I did wrong. Even when it sucks." She shuddered. "It really does suck. But...that's just what you have to do."</p><p>He looked at her with wide eyes, before giving her a soft smile. "Yeah...thanks, m'lady." He jumped to his feet and offered her a hand, pulling her up after she took it and adding, "Well, I should probably head back. See you at patrol?"</p><p>"You've got it, kitty." With that, the two split off, and Ladybug hoped that, whatever was going on with Chat Noir, it would work out.</p>
<hr/><p>Adrien barely managed to make it back to the theater before he was suddenly surrounded on both sides.</p><p>"Where were you?!" Kagami and Felix both proceeded to shout at the same time, before giving each other a suspicious side-eye.</p><p>"Hiding?" he practically squeaked, a bit intimidated about being cornered.</p><p>Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Marinette getting tackled by three people, who he vaguely remembered as the people who had walked in with her and his cousin. But he didn't have time to think on it before Kagami and Felix began practically talking over each other, ultimately in a mishmash that translated to, "Don't disappear on us again, are you crazy, there was an akuma out you idiot!"</p><p>"Sorry," he said sheepishly when they both had to stop for air, rubbing his arm awkwardly. "I didn't mean to scare you guys like that."</p><p>Kagami sighed, pinching her brow. "You are a complete and utter menace."</p><p>He laughed a bit nervously. "Sorry."</p><p>Felix gently whacked him upside the head. "Stop apologizing."</p><p>Adrien bit back another apology, and he could practically feel Plagg's silent laughter under his suit jacket. "I'll be more careful in the future, promise."</p><p>"You'd better," Kagami told him, giving him a dirty look. Then she looked over to Felix, before asking, "Do you need to kidnap him again or is everything alright now?"</p><p>Felix blinked, then sighed. "Could you excuse us for a moment?"</p><p>"Of course," she told him, looking over at Adrien and adding, "See you when the movie starts." Then, she walked over to where Marinette was with the rest of her friends, and he could see Marinette greeting her cheerfully.</p><p>"Did you have to get a crush on my best friend?" Felix asked, raising an eyebrow at him, and Adrien jumped, before rubbing the back of his neck.</p><p>"I...uh, whoops?" He laughed a bit nervously. "I'm not...uh, stepping on any toes?"</p><p>Felix's face twisted in disgust. "Absolutely not." Adrien laughed a bit as Felix shook his head, seeming unnerved by even the suggestion. "Trust me, I am not and have never been interested in Marinette like that. It's...off." He grimaced. "Like if you were interested in Chloé."</p><p>Adrien winced. "Oh yeah, I see what you mean." <em>I've known Chloé so long it would be </em>weird<em> to view her romantically. I don't even think she liked me so much as she liked the fact that she could brag that I was her boyfriend. </em>"Uh...we aren't actually friends anymore though."</p><p>Felix blinked. "Really?"</p><p>"Yeah, uh..." he sighed. "It was kind of a lot of things, but it got to a point where I couldn't really make excuses for her anymore. She was hurting my other friends, and I couldn't condone it anymore, so...at that point I just stopped."</p><p>"...Good for you," Felix stated firmly, and Adrien looked up to see he was being genuine. "I'm glad that you were able to decide for yourself that the relationship wasn't working out."</p><p>Adrien smiled, then let out a sheepish laugh. "We really need to check up on each other more, huh?" Then, quietly, "I'm sorry about your dad. And I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you when he died. But...I'm here now?"</p><p>Felix looked over him, as if determining the value of the remark, before nodding quietly. "Thank you, Adrien."</p><p>"Hey Felix!" a voice called, and both boys looked over to see Marinette, her friends, and Kagami looking over at them, a brown haired boy in a blue waistcoat waving over to them. "C'mon, the movie is about to start, and we're all in the same row!"</p><p>Felix gave the brown-haired boy a flat look, before sighing. "Well, best not to keep them waiting I suppose." He looked over to Adrien and gestured for him to lead the way.</p><p>After a series of very sudden, very quick introductions, the group ended up walking up to the doors, where Aunt Amelie was waiting.</p><p>"Adrien!" she cried out, pulling him into a hug and pinching his cheek slightly. "You just keep getting cuter by the day. Though I guess I'm biased, since you take after your mother so much and we are identical twins." Then she very carefully ruffled his hair, adding, "I'm glad you seem to be doing alright. I heard your father was actually letting you outside, and it definitely shows."</p><p>"Aunt Amelie," Adrien didn't whine, a bit embarrassed.</p><p>"She does that with all of us too," one of the boys, Alan, assured him, giving him a smirk. "It stops being as embarrassing when you realize she will do the same thing to all of your friends."</p><p>Marinette nodded sagely, adding, "She's been doing it since I was little. She's almost as bad as my own parents honestly."</p><p>Adrien blinked, then snorted. "Fair enough, I guess."</p><p>It seemed the brunet, Claude, had been correct, as they were all in the same row. And Kagami smirked at him mischievously as she sat in the seat between his and Marinette's seats.</p><p>"Traitor," he whispered quietly to her.</p><p>"Simp," she responded bluntly, and he flushed red with embarrassment and turned his attention toward the movie.</p><p>Oh well...despite everything, it was still a good movie.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>* Out of some respect for the actual human person who was in this episode, I sidelined the akuma plot and didn't really give it much attention. The battle isn't significantly different anyway, nor are his motives. The only real difference is Marinette and Chloé weren't involved in his akumatization.<br/>* Also everyone at the premiere (except Tom and Sabine) is wearing formal wear, because it's fun and also I was really annoyed by the original episode having Adrien and Kagami dressed formally for the event while Chloé and Astruc's self insert were dressed in incredibly casual clothes.<br/>* Allegra and Claude often act like a unit I've noticed, since their personalities mesh pretty well, and part of me is terrified I'm not differentiating their personalities well enough. Admittedly I haven't gotten much chance for their separate personalities to shine, given that this story doesn't focus on them, but still. I plan on doing more with the Quantic Kids and Felix to better establish their personalities, and hopefully I'll be able to better establish Allegra and Claude as separate entities.</p><p><strong>...Outfits!</strong><br/>* Allegra: full-length lavender halter dress, with beaded lace on the torso and neck and dripping onto the chiffon skirt; loose hair with silver headband, silver bracelets, lavender nails with white flowers, silver sandals<br/>* Claude: light blue tux over a white dress shirt without the jacket, skinny blue patterned tie, bright blue nails with lighter blue stripes<br/>* Alan: black pants, white dress shirt, black bow tie, emerald green suit jacket with black trim, emerald green nails<br/>* Felix: light grey tux, white dress shirt, red tie and pocket square (outfit began as just light grey and white to juxtapose it from Adrien's dark grey and black, but I later chose to add him wearing red as a Ladybug tribute for reasons)<br/>* Chloé's: red dress with full skirt that ends just above the knee patterned with large black polka dots, black belt, black faux fur shrug, her Ladybug cosplay earrings, a small circular purse that looks like Ladybug's yoyo, white tights, black kitten heels, hair in a braid crown with glitter, french manicure<br/>* Jagged Stone: white suit jacket covered in what looks like multi-colored paint splatters, black v-neck, black dress pants (he nearly wore ripped black jeans but Penny vetoed that)<br/>* Nathalie: black evening gown with an asymmetric neckline, black heels, silver earrings (her outfit is meant to be subtle and blend into the background while still being elegant and formal)<br/>* Marinette: black hi-lo dress with a sparkly black lace overlay, lime green lining on the inside of the skirt, an asymmetric one-shoulder neckline, and a green sash; gold bell necklace, black tights, black flats, a black ring on her right ring finger, lime green nails, hair up in a bun, lime green clutch with a paw pad pattern on it<br/>* <a href="https://www.pinterest.ca/boopboopitydoop/formal-clothes-for-a-thing/">Here</a> is a Pinterest board I made when looking for outfit references, though only Allegra, Claude, Alan, and Nathalie's outfits are actually on here. As of posting Pinterest is acting weird so the link may not work, but I'll fix it in the morning if I need to.<br/>* Felix and Jagged Stone's were improvised.<br/>* Marinette and Chloé ended up involving me doing a bit of fashion design on my part, in that I drew up what I was considering on index cards to see if the general shapes alone looked good. <a href="https://boopboopitydoop.tumblr.com/post/650767237583601664/fashion-design-is-my-passion-j">Here's the <strike>terrible</strike> picture of the index cards that I posted on Tumblr.</a> They might look horrible on people but I was just fucking around so please forgive me.</p><p>This chapter took forever, and after multiple rereads and tweaks and angst, I'm done with it. I have let it sit too long and so it has either aged nicely like wine or it is stale and moldy and I am done caring. It is done. I'm done. I'm moving on. Hope you enjoyed it, and hope I actually update either this or AEP again before the end of the summer. Love you all, goodnight.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm sleepy.</p><p>If you want to ask questions about this au or just talk to me in general, shoot me a message at <a href="https://boopboopitydoop.tumblr.com">Tumblr</a> or leave a comment below. Or if you want to bother me about getting back to my other major long fic right now, which is also fair.</p><p>Massive Edit:<br/>Okay so I did some research and realized I made a severe boo boo with the name of the hat kid of the Quantic Kids. Essentially the name I used was his secret identity, and given the connotations for what the name represents due to its connection to a specific character from <em>Les Misérables</em> I felt it was in bad taste to keep the name, so I went through the whole of what I've written so far and renamed him Alan. Sorry for any confusion if you read the updates and are wondering who the hell Alan is. He's the same character, but with a better name.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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